A Good Ocean Gone Wrong - 1/1

[xoxxblitz7]

A Good Ocean Gone Wrong


April 10th 1912 -

The drive from London to Southampton isn’t too long but Frank is already eager to step out from the moving vehicle and back on to solid land for a moment, but he knows that he won’t be able to sustain that for much longer as the elegant car pulls up alongside the ship on the docks. Frank detests cars and even though he should be used to travelling with Gerard and his brother, Mikey, he would still rather his own two feet as his preferred means of transport.

As they pull up beside the ship and step out of the car Frank notices Gerard handing a crew member a few bills and instructing him where they are going to be staying. Mikey jumps out of the car the other side and walks around, gazing up at the large ship.

“So she’s unsinkable, right?” Mikey asks staring up at the ship, all four funnels starting to fill with smoke. Frank turns around and looks at her too, taking in the sheer size of what they are about to travel on.

“At least that’s what they say…” Frank agrees, still staring at the ship and trying to think back to when his life started to become so amazing. At that moment Gerard places a sly hand on to the bottom of Frank’s back and pushes him away from the car and towards the entrance to the ship that reads First Class.

Mikey leads, following a steward who leads them up one of the large ramps and further towards the inside of the ship. When they get to the entrance Mikey turns to Gerard and collects their tickets, quickly showing them to the steward.

“Welcome to the RMS Titanic, gentlemen,” the steward offers with a pleasant smile and Mikey nods back, walking through quickly and in to the grand ship. “Do you require assistance in finding your suite, sir?” he asks and Mikey shakes his head, no. Right behind him with Gerard calls out, subtlety guiding Frank with a hand on his hip.

“Mikey, we’re in B 52, 54 and 56. What deck is this?” Gerard calls out and Mikey stops to look around.

They’re stood by the grand staircase, full oak banisters and broad stairwells and even for such wealthy people such as Gerard and Mikey, it’s breathtaking. There is a full clock at the top of the stairs, laden with gold a gold finish and looking lavish. As Mikey looks up with an open mouth he sees the ceiling isn’t actually there, but a large decorative glass dome in its place, letting rays of sunlight through the panes.

“I think it’s this way?” Mikey motions towards the signs that are placed above the corridors that branch off from the grand staircase. Gerard nods and follows Mikey through the small crowd of people and through one of the corridors. It’s only a matter of seconds once they get through until they find their suite.

“B-52, here right?” Mikey asks and Gerard calls out.

“Yeah Mikes, right here.” Gerard concludes and waits for Mikey to open the door.

When he opens the door he isn’t expecting what he sees. Mikey opens his mouth again, looking around at their suite. The first room is one of the bedrooms. In the middle there is a large double bed, thick with only the best sheets and feather pillows, the same kind of oak from the staircase too. The walls are thick with dark wood and golden furnishings such as lamps and a table.

“I just cannot believe this is on a ship.” Mikey speaks still looking around at the room.

“The light is amazing in here,” Gerard adds and Frank rolls his eyes.

“We are in the most lavish state room on the Titanic and you are concerned about the quality of lighting?” Frank asks as he wanders around the room and over to the door that leads to their shared living room. He opens the door and walks though, eyes wide at the size of the joint rooms.

“Gerard, I think this living room is larger than our one at home…” Frank speaks with disbelief, looking around at the several couches and chairs spanning the floor, glossy side tables stood next to them.

Gerard walks through the door and in to the living room and nods. “Our parents did say they had booked a great suite,” he remembers and Frank rolls his eyes at him again.

“I don’t even want to think about how much this cost.” Frank sighs and walks forward to open the door to what he assumes is the next bedroom.

He’s right as he walks through the door and in to another bedroom exactly the same to the previous, littered with fancy furniture and the most amazing bed Frank has probably ever seen.

Just as Frank is about to call Gerard in to make a joke about their bed one of the stewards comes in with their luggage. He drops some on to the bedroom floor and walks through to the living room to ask where the rest needs to be left. Mikey instructs him to his room that he has apparently already claimed and pulls out his wallet, handing him some notes again for his troubles. If anything, that was the one thing that Frank did love about the Ways; that although they had money and much of it, they were always polite.

Once the steward settles the rests of the luggage down from outside in to the living room Frank walks back in and finds another door. When he opens it he finds a large room, light and airy with windows already open. He wanders forward and finds that it’s not only a deck; it’s their own private deck that is included with their suite. Frank shakes his head and laughs a little because really, money can buy you just about everything.

Just then Gerard walks in, finding Frank and wanders over to him. Frank’s leaning against the window as he looks out, noticing that the ship is slowly starting to move from the port.

“Are the accommodations satisfactory for you, my love?” Gerard jokes with his posh voice and Frank turns around to smirk at him before averting his attention back to the sea again. Gerard quickly wraps his arms around Frank’s middle and rests his head on his shoulder.

“I didn’t know they were going to book such a lavish suite, really I didn’t,” Gerard offers and Frank shrugs, turning around from looking outside of the window to face Gerard.

“It’s amazing. I just can’t help but think I would be happy with you in third class also, that’s all.”

Gerard smiles and leans in to peck at Frank’s lips. “Somehow I don’t think I would last in third class, do you?”

Frank smirks and begins to laugh. “Fair point.”

It’s always an occurring problem when they travel it seems. Frank still isn’t used to the sheer amount of money the Way’s have, and if he wasn’t with Gerard, Frank knows that he would be down in steerage with the other third class passengers and he also knows that he wouldn’t be too unhappy down their either. Frank’s never had money until now, and as hard as he tries he just can’t get the hang of this whole having money situation, because he was born in to nothing and has never had anything, up until he met Gerard, that is.

“Besides, we can have breakfast out on our deck together.” Gerard suggests and smiles before pecking Frank’s lips again.

Frank uses this moment to wrap his arms around Gerard’s middle and pulls their hips together quickly. “Or use our time out on our private deck a little differently, no?”

Gerard smirks and pushes against Frank a few times, leaning in to kiss him again before walking off back in to their living room.

“Frank, come and see our bath tub…” Gerard calls and Frank already knows there is a smirk hidden in his suggesting voice.

-
Another thing that Frank is yet to grow used to is having so many people know who Gerard and Mikey are. It seems a theme now that if you have money almost everybody knows exactly who you are and how you came in to that fortune.

Gerard’s an artist and a very well known and talented one also. He’s been painting and drawing for a long time now, but it’s only in recent years that he’s become so well known for his work. This means lots of money and of course many business meetings and negotiations in the works too. Frank travels with him the majority of the time, Mikey too sometimes if he needs a quick holiday and break away from their parents.

Frank’s never had money. He was never born in to a rich family like Gerard and Mikey and had never experienced anything of luxury until he fell in love with Gerard. He tries his best to fit in at dinner, wearing his dress clothes and slicking his hair back, talking the right words and looking the part but really, he loves nothing more than to sit at home in his old, scratchy slacks and a cheap shirt.

It seems that aboard the Titanic though, there are so many more people that know exactly who Gerard and Mikey are.

When they arrive at dinner that night dressed in their best and ready to dine they are shown to their seats. They are sharing their table with many other rich businessmen, just like Gerard but specialising in other trades, cotton and printing mostly. It still amazes Frank that people know of him too, but only as the Way’s acquaintance. He still gets treated as though he’s been born in to money though, and with Gerard next to him he never has to worry, but dinners like these are usually stressful and tiring and all Frank wants to do is eat in his slacks and climb in to bed with Gerard right afterwards.

The first night on the ship though, he knows he isn’t going to be in bed with Gerard anytime soon, not until the food falters or the cigars and brandy become unavailable.

The dining room is like nothing Frank has ever seen before. Of course, the house that he and Gerard live in back home is large and has lots of light and upon entering you can of course tell that Gerard has money and the same with the Way’s household, Mr and Mrs Way along with Mikey keep their house and courtyards clean and welcoming, and when Frank had first seen them he had been stuck for words and breath.

But the dining room on the Titanic, it’s really something else. Every five metres or so upon the ceiling are glass chandeliers, sparkling in the light and catching everyone’s eyes. The chairs that they are sitting on are green leather and Frank wouldn’t mind taking a few home for their dining room.

Frank’s also not used to eating so much. He’s not used to eating a five course meal so often in his life, and it seems that’s all he seems to eat of late, caviar and toast followed by a fine cut of meat, followed by a side of expensive fish and of course desert. He’s sure he’s put on pounds just being with Gerard, but he does enjoy actually eating, because being a starving musician is not the highlight of Frank’s life so far.

They eat their dinner listening to elegant music and Frank can’t help but want to walk over to the piano and start playing. He doesn’t know much, only what Gerard has taught him but he loves his music, and having played the guitar for so many years of his life when homeless, whenever he hears the sounds of live music, he can’t help but want to play too.

On course four just before desert they are all full. Mikey is sitting there pushing pieces of salmon around his plate and Gerard is drinking his champagne, talking to a fellow passenger about managing styles and running a business and Frank can’t help but want to leave. He’s full and fresh air seems the most amazing thing right at this moment.

“Gerard, would you like to take a walk in a moment?” Frank asks politely and Gerard turns from his conversation to look at Frank for a moment with curious eyes before nodding.

Frank smiles and leans over to Mikey. “Walk, Mikes?” he asks and Mikey nods, pushing his plate away and refusing more champagne as the waiter offers to top up his glass for him.

A few minutes later they are leaving the table, Gerard making sure to shake everyone’s hand that he’s been conversing with and of course kissing the ladies’ hands before making their way from the dinner room and out on to the deck.

“I’m sorry, I really needed some air.” Gerard places a hand on the small of Frank’s back for a moment.

“No need to apologise, it was time to leave I feel.” Gerard smiles and looks behind to see Mikey staring around at the ship. “Are you alright, Mikey?”

Mikey snaps from his thoughts and nods. “This ship is amazing,” he concludes after looking around for a while, finishing his inspection to looking out across the Atlantic Ocean.

They walk around the deck for a while, staring out at the sea. It’s blue all around, surrounding the boat with waves hitting up the sides of the ship. The air is thick with a salty smell and the breeze is light on their faces, providing a cool breeze but warm enough to walk around the deck in just their dinner suits.

Frank looks over at the lifeboats that are scattered around the deck and smirks. “You know, I think I used to sleep under an old boat like that when I was homeless…” he laughs to himself and Gerard smirks at him too, shaking his head.

“This ship is unsinkable, why are there lifeboats?” Mikey questions with a confused look on his face.

Gerard shrugs. “Safety measures?”

Mikey shrugs too and continues walking. They walk a little further up the deck and stop by the sun loungers. “I think I’m going to sit here and sun myself tomorrow…” Mikey laughs to himself and Gerard scrunches up his nose.

“Please, do not inflict that on the world Mikey.” Gerard asks with a smirk pulling at his lips and Frank laughs along with him.

They continue their walk around the deck and right to the front of the ship, staring out at the sea for a while, the ship speeding forward and heading in to the night. They walk alongside the other side of the ship of their way back, almost identical to the first side they walked.

It’s only when they walk down nearer to the first class entrance that Frank looks up to the bridge and sees a tall man stood there.

“I know him! That’s Ray,” Frank exclaims and points up to the bridge, Gerard and Mikey following his direction and staring up to whoever Ray is, watching him speak to one of the crew. There is a stairwell up to the bridge and a small gate at the top stopping anybody from entering. Frank climbs the stairs quickly and the brothers follow, intrigued as to how Frank knows this person.

“Ray!” Frank shouts as he leans over the gate. Ray snaps his head quickly towards Frank and instantly smiles. He excuses himself for a moment and walks over to Frank.

“No way! Frankie?!” Ray says and pulls Frank in to a hug across the gate. “How the hell are you, man?”

Frank laughs and hugs him, patting him on the back. “I’m great, you?”

“I’m good, working on the ship. You’re working too?” Ray asks and motions towards Frank’s expensive dinner suit.

Frank laughs a little before shaking his head awkwardly. “I’m not working, no. I’m with Gerard here, and his brother Mikey.”

Ray’s eyes are wide for a moment as he stares at Frank and finally realises that he is actually a passenger. Ray smiles a few seconds later though and reaches around Frank and holds his hand out to Gerard and Mikey.

“I’m Ray, head of the engine room. Nice to meet you,” he offers and shakes Gerard’s hand first before leaning further to shake Mikey’s, smiling wide when he sees the younger brother.

“Ray’s an old buddy from back in the day; he’s great to have around.” Frank turns to tell Gerard and Mikey and they smile, genuine. That’s one thing about the Way’s that Frank fell in love with and found so different about others in money. They are respectful and are always friendly to those less fortunate than them. Of course, they adore their money and their lifestyle but are slower to judge than most of the passengers in first class.

“You’ve done well for yourself, man.” Frank pushes Ray’s shoulder and Ray laughs, nodding.

“I figured I wasn’t going to get anywhere busking on the streets for much longer. I cleaned myself up and got a job and here I am!” Ray admits and Frank grins because he’s on the damn Titanic and he’s found one of the best friends he’s ever come across. It’s then that Ray hears somebody calling his name. He turns around quickly and notices that he’s needed. “I’m sorry, I have to go. It was great seeing you Frankie, and great meeting you two!” He smiles and waves as he starts to walk away.

“See you around!” Frank calls out and turns around, ushering Mikey and Gerard back down the bridge stairs.

When they get back to their suite Mikey is tired and announces he is going to bed. As he closes the door to his bedroom he calls out across the shared room. “And please, for my sanity do not be intimate tonight!” He exclaims and hears Frank giggling as they shut their bedroom door.

Mikey shakes his head and undresses ready for bed.

In the other room Frank and Gerard are already undressing too, taking their dinner suits off and hanging them in their wardrobe. Their maid that is provided with their suite had offered to help them but Gerard had insisted that there was no reason for her to help and had tipped her, even though she hadn’t really done much.

When they are down to their silk boxers they peel the thick bedding back and climb in to the large bed, sighing as their heads hit their pillows.

“It’s been a long day,” Gerard sighs and Frank nods, moving closer to Gerard to rest his head on his bare chest. He instantly wraps his arms around Frank’s middle and kisses the top of his head.

“I wasn’t pleased about sharing you at dinner tonight.” Frank states and stares up at Gerard with a pout across his lips. He hates sharing Gerard with the Duke and Duchess of God knows how many places all of the time, because sometimes he just wants to be left alone to eat with Gerard in peace. It’s never that simple though because they aren’t allowed to be so blasé about their relationship, especially when money is involved. Frank often stays quiet at meal times and events, even though he wants to reach under the table and touch Gerard’s leg.

Gerard laughs and kisses Frank’s lips. “I know, but it’s never for long. You always have me to yourself at night.” He offers and Frank smirks.

“Mm, night-time is the most important time too…” Frank agrees and leans up to kiss Gerard again, opening his mouth to accommodate his lover’s tongue. He’s missed this, it’s been all he’s wanted for the majority of the evening and Frank hates it when he has to pretend that Gerard isn’t his. He hates having to share him and to act normal when rich and beautiful women are trying to make Gerard theirs. Of course Gerard never falters, he’s polite and respectful and never leads them on, but it still makes Frank all kinds of jealous.

It doesn’t take long for Frank to turn on his side so that he is half on top of Gerard now, pushing further in to his mouth with his tongue and groaning quietly. As the kiss intensifies Frank crawls on top of Gerard, the sheets falling down his back and the air hits his skin. The cabin is cool but Frank’s not too cold and he’s sure that in a few moments he’s going to be a lot warmer. Once Frank is on top of Gerard and straddling his middle he breaks the kiss but keeps his lips pressed against Gerard’s.

“I want you to take me, Gerard.” Frank whispers against his lips and Gerard nods, kissing Frank before moving his hand’s from where they were resting on Frank’s hips to push his shoulders back, pushing him down on the bed and climbing on top of him.

Frank grins as he lies back against the pillows, watching Gerard as he kneels back on his heels and looks around the room for a second. He climbs off of Frank a moment later and makes his way across to their luggage, opening a case a little to push his hand inside. He smiles when he pulls the glass jar of Vaseline out and walks back over to the bed and sets the jar down on the bed. Gerard pushes his silk boxers down and lets them drop to the floor. He smiles when he looks back up to see Frank lifting his hips and pushing his own boxers down his hips and lets them fall to his ankles. He then kicks his legs up in the air and lets his underwear drop someplace at the end of the large bed.

Gerard climbs back on to the bed and crawls on top of Frank, legs either side of Frank’s thighs and drops his torso down, holding himself up with his hands as he dips down to kiss Frank again. It’s more tongue this time, wet and hot and sliding against one another. Frank starts to rock his hips up too, his arousal rubbing against Gerard’s as they kiss.

A moment later Gerard breaks the kiss and kneels back on his feet, looking around the bed for the jar of Vaseline. He finds it quickly and twists the metal lid from the top before pushing two fingers in and gathering a large blob of the substance before carefully putting the lid back on.

Frank’s smiling as he watches Gerard use his thumb to massage the lubricant in to the tips of his fingers before he uses his other hand to spread Frank’s legs. He takes his time, gently stroking the skin on the inside of his thigh before moving his sticky fingers down towards his entrance. Frank hisses a little when the petroleum touches his skin because it’s still cold, even though Gerard had tried his best to warm it up. He relaxes a little when he feels Gerard’s finger pressing in to him, pushing inside with the help of the Vaseline and starting to open him up.

Frank pushes against the finger and allows Gerard to push all the way in, curling the digit a little before pulling out and adding another finger. Frank relaxes his body, pressing his head against the large pillows and sighs as he feels Gerard push two fingers all the way. It feels a little uncomfortable at first but they have been with each other a lot the past week or so, so Frank knows he’s ready after a few pushes of Gerard’s fingers.

Frank pulls himself back a little by arching his hips and pulls himself from Gerard’s touch. Gerard laughs and nods, knowing what Frank wants. His fingers are still lubricated from opening Frank so Gerard takes his dick in his hands, rubbing the left over Vaseline over the head and the length, sighing as he sees Frank is watching him. He keeps a hold of his dick and shuffles forward on his knees so that he’s close enough to Frank before holding himself at the base, using his other hand to spread Frank’s cheeks and line himself up.

He pushes in slowly, enjoying the feeling of Frank starting to surround him and savouring how warm and tight it feels. He pushes gently, rocking his hips back and forth a little to edge his way inside. Frank still has his head against the pillow, eyes half open and looking right at Gerard. When he feels Gerard’s hips against his own he knows he’s all the way inside. Frank smiles and Gerard follows, smiling back at Frank with small teeth.

When Frank smiles at Gerard he usually knows that it means he can move. Gerard does so, pulling his hips back even more so this time before pushing in to Frank a little deeper. Frank moans, mouth open and that smile still toying at his lips. Gerard grins and repeats his actions, snapping his hips forward a few times, and gaining speed.

After a few minutes of slow and deep thrusts Gerard moves his hands from where they were resting on Frank’s hips and moves them to take Frank’s hands in his own. He stops his movements as he thrusts in to Frank and holds still, lacing their fingers together. Frank moans loud this time, clenching around Gerard as he feels so full when Gerard just stays there, still and hard inside of him.

Gerard groans and pushes their entwined hands against the bed and starts to really move, snapping his hips back and forth quickly, not as deep but it’s quick and needy and Frank is moaning high and loud, thrashing his head back against the pillows and squeezing Gerard’s hands with his own.

“I want to show you how much I love you.” Gerard mouths against Frank’s collar bone, leaning forward to kiss and nip at the skin. Frank nods. “I want to make you know that you are mine, and that I would never deny you anything.” Gerard continues and Frank groans because Gerard is really filling him now, quick solid motions of back and forth, in and out and it’s all getting too much with the added speech.

“I’know…” Frank gasps out as Gerard hits the spot inside of him that sends him down, on a long and downward spiral of moans and gasps.

“You are everything to me.” Gerard kisses the moist skin on Frank’s chest before moving his head to look right at Frank. His dark hair is a mess against the white, crisp pillow and he looks beautiful. “I’m yours, Frankie.” Gerard concludes and starts to slow down, reverting back to long and deep fills and that’s all Frank needs; Gerard’s face pressing against his neck, telling him that he’s his and slowing his thrusts so that he’s hitting his spot precisely. That’s all Frank needs to tighten around Gerard and spill against his chest, squeezing Gerard’s hands even tighter and staring right in to his eyes. It’s intense, and Gerard groans as he feels Frank tighten around him, feeling Frank’s orgasm on himself and with a few more slow and deep thrusts, Gerard is coming inside of Frank.

They are both gasping, Gerard mouthing at the skin on Frank’s neck and kissing it softly, still feeling himself emptying. When he’s done he stills his motions, holding Frank close with their hands still together.

They clean up slowly with a towel from Gerard’s luggage, feeling no need to rush around their suite as they pull their silk boxers back on and climb in to bed. Once they are there Frank reverts back to how he was lay before, head on Gerard’s chest.

“What are we doing tomorrow?” Frank asks as he pulls the sheets closer to him.

“I’d quite like to paint I think,” Gerard replies, his voice sounding a little deeper now he’s sleepy. “Would you like to watch?” He asks because Frank always loves to watch him paint for some reason or another. Gerard has never pretended to know why he likes to do so, but it seems to please him.

Frank nods against Gerard’s chest and lets his eyes slip closed, focusing on the familiar arms around him instead of the unfamiliar surroundings.


April 11th 1912 –

When morning arrives there is a knock on the door. It’s the maids that have been appointed to the Way’s suite and Gerard groans as he carefully pushes Frank off of him and nearly falls out of bed. He takes his dressing gown from the hook on the back of the door and pulls it on quickly, covering his naked body. He walks through the bedroom and in to the living room where he unlocks the door and opens it with a sleepy smile.

“Hello Sir, I’m here to serve you breakfast,” the maid states with a cheery smile and Gerard has to make a note that she is far too happy for such an early time in the morning. “Are you planning to have breakfast on your private deck, sir?” she asks and Gerard nods without thinking.

He steps to the side to let her wheel the cart of breakfast in to the room and out towards their decking. Gerard is taken back by the amount of food and wonders if they know only three people are staying in their suite for the journey. He doesn’t say anything though, only follows her outside. The sun is bright already when he steps out and his eyes aren’t quite ready for such light. He rubs at his eyes a little and watches as the maid sets the breakfast table up. When she’s finished with her tasks she stands back and smiles at Gerard. “Is this alright for you sir?” she asks and Gerard nods.

“It’s great, thank you.” He smiles and she starts to walk from the room. “Oh, I didn’t get your name?”

She looks shocked but smiles at the same time. “Harriet, sir,” she offers and Gerard smiles back.

“Thank you for your help, Harriet.” Gerard concludes and she smiles and quickly exits their suite.

Gerard looks around at the spread of food in front of him and sighs. He better go wake the others.

It takes a while to get Mikey from his bed. Gerard all but drags him from it and he’s not happy, but the promise of coffee and food finally tears Mikey away from his large bed.

He wakes Frank up next, leaving Mikey on the decking as he slowly creeps back in to their room, peppering kisses across Frank’s neck and cheeks until his eyes flutter open.

“Breakfast, my love.” Gerard smiles and kisses Frank’s nose. Frank nods and brings a hand up to rub at his eyes. He sits up in bed and lets the sheets fall from his body exposing his upper half. Gerard looks at him fondly before walking over to the door to pull Franks gown from the hook. He takes it back over to him and drops it on to the bed.

“You mean you don’t want me to go to breakfast naked?” Frank grins as he pulls the robe on and climbs down from the bed, wrapping the material around himself before tying the rope around his middle.

Gerard laughs and leans forward to peck Frank on the lips. “I would love to eat breakfast with you naked, but I’m not sure my brother or the maids would approve.”

Frank pouts and Gerard kisses his lips again before taking him by the hand and leading him out of their bedroom and through the living room towards the decking.

They eat breakfast on the decking, talking about how comfortable their beds were for the night and talking about the rest of their journey. Mikey’s quiet though, not quite ready to participate in the conversation until he’s had at least two cups of coffee with far too much brown sugar.

“So we’re going to lunch with who today?” Mikey asks as he takes a large gulp of coffee before setting the mug down, getting to work on a piece of bacon.

Gerard rolls his eyes because Mikey is always forgetting who everybody is, and it is rather annoying for Gerard when he has to stand there whispering who everyone is at dinner the next day.

“The duke and duchess of Gloucester, Mikey.” Gerard states and Mikey shrugs. “You ought to pay more attention you know, our parents’ are quite fond of these people.”

Mikey shrugs again. “I don’t like business.”

-

Mikey doesn’t like business and Frank certainly does not like a lunch with a ban of public displays of affection. Again, all he wants to do is lean in towards Gerard and kiss his check, kiss his hand or even just hold his knee under the table (where nobody would see, really) but he’s never allowed. Gerard always makes a pained face when he sees Frank is sulking next to him, but business is business and he has to play by everyone else’s rules.

When they are finished eating their lunch they say goodbye to the Duke and Duchess and walk back to their suite. Mikey is complaining about having to sit through ‘yet another lunch’ where everybody compliments Gerard on his amazing art. When they arrive back at their suite Gerard announces that he’s inspired to paint.

“Frankie, would you mind getting me my art supplies please?” Gerard asks sweetly as he sits down at the large desk in the living room. Frank shakes his head because Frank never minds fetching Gerard his art supplies. He loves to watch Gerard draw and paint, loves to watch him sculpt and create pieces of his imagination for all to see. Mikey however, detests watching Gerard and makes his opinion very clear.

“I did not come aboard the Titanic to sit and watch you paint, Gerard.” Mikey complains as he lets himself fall on to the couch in the middle of the room. He lets out a long breath and groans. “I’m really tired of being both of yours tag along, it’s very boring.”

Gerard throws his hands in the air and turns around on his chair to look at Mikey. “You don’t have to stay with us, why don’t you find something to do. This ship is large enough.”

Mikey sighs. “You are trying to get rid of me, aren’t you?” he asks and hauls himself from the couch and walks over to the mirror. He palms his hair back down flat and turns his head either side to stare at his reflection.

“No, I just want to paint.” Gerard replies and turns himself back round to face the desk as Frank sets his case of art supplies in front of him.

“I’m going for a walk, what time is dinner tonight?” Mikey asks walking towards the main door.

“Seven, please do not be late, we’re having dinner with…”

Mikey cuts him off. “I don’t want to know who we’re having dinner with tonight, really I don’t,” he states and walks from their cabin. He’s not even sure where he wants to go, so he turns left and walks through, smiling and nodding his hellos to a few passengers that clearly know who he is.

He walks along the top decks for a while and enjoying the feel of the sun against his skin. He hasn't put a tie on today and he feels better for not doing so, he's never really liked wearing them and they often make him feel like he's suffocating. He's wearing a crisp white, short sleeved shirt with his black waistcoat and unlike many of the elder male passengers, he can get away with looking a little lax when walking around the decks during the day time.

For a while he sits down on one of the large wooden benches and watches the sea. It's rippling from where they are moving at great speeds, white foam around the sides of the ship and in the distance he can see birds hovering on the water. It's oddly calming considering he doesn't like water nor boats for that matter, but there is never an alternative and they never do travel in anything less than first class.

Soon he grows bored of sitting on the decks and makes his way back under, walking through a corridor and back on to the main staircase, looking up at the large dome of glass again. It's reflecting the light now they're in the middle of the ocean, bright sun casting shadows on the stairs as he walks down, choosing a random corridor and walking further down the ship. Mikey doesn't even know where he's heading, just continues walking and staring at the decoration on the ships walls, odd paintings covering the walls between the first class suites. As he walks further and further though, and down a few flights of stairs he notices that the decoration is starting to change slightly, the lavish paintings and golden signs with suite numbers on soon turn in to dull and metal plaques with passage numbers on.

He stops and looks around for a moment before realising where he is. Before he can turn around or even contemplate where he's going to walk to next though, he hears a familiar voice and his mind jumps trying to figure out exactly who he could know down in steerage.

"Hey, Mikey?" the voice calls and Mikey turns around to see Ray. He's staring at Mikey with wide eyes, he's also covered in dirt from head to foot, black smudges around his face and all across his old, thin shirt.

Mikey smiles and nods. "Hi, it's Ray right?" Mikey asks politely.

Ray's eyes are still wide. "What are you doing down here?" Ray asks with a concerned face.

Mikey starts to feel a little nervous. He looks around slowly and shrugs his shoulders. "I-I came for a walk?" Mikey offers and starts to rub at his neck.

Ray's face softens a little but then starts to shake his head. "You really shouldn't be down here y'know."

Mikey bites his lip. "I'm sorry, I didn't know." he speaks, starting to feel horribly embarrassed that he's been walking around forbidden parts of the ship.

"No, you're allowed down here...It's just..." Ray gestures around and then towards Mikey. "You don't want to be down here, not dressed like that."

Mikey furrows his eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

Ray laughs a little now feeling suddenly nervous. "You could get hurt down here Mikey, some steerage and crew aren't that good of people."

Mikey stares at Ray and still looks confused. "It's just, you have nice clothes, nice things. Somebody might want to take them down here. You're better off staying above decks." Ray explains and Mikey starts to understand, still feeling awfully stupid.

He pushes a hand inside of his slacks pocket and traces the round shape of his expensive pocket watch. He didn't even think that there could be people that would try to rob him on the ship. "I'm sorry, I'll be more careful, I just got lost," he explains and Ray's face falls.

"Hey no, I was just looking out for you, right?" Ray offers and Mikey nods quickly.

"Sure yeah, thank you..." Mikey speaks quickly and ends with a smile. He looks back at Ray and notices his clothes again. "Have you been working?" he asks softly.

"Yeah, had an early shift. It's tough down there, getting this ship to move is hard work." Ray laughs. "I'm just running to bathe actually, trying to beat the queues." Ray admits and holds his towel up to show Mikey. It's almost as dirty as Ray is and the material looks rough.

"Queues?" Mikey asks without thinking.

Ray laughs and nods. "Yeah, we don't have baths of our own down in steerage, we have communal bathrooms with a few baths in."

Mikey furrows his eyebrows again. "A few for the entire of 3rd and crew?"

Ray looks a little awkward now. "Yeah, more than what a lot of us have at home, though."

Mikey swallows quickly and nods a little and without even connecting his brain to his mouth he starts to speak again. "You should come and use our bath." he speaks quickly and Ray looks taken back. "I mean...you won't have to queue, nobody is using it...Frank's there..." Mikey starts to babble and Ray nods slowly.

"If nobody would mind?" Ray offers and Mikey shakes his head quickly.

"No, of course not. You make this ship move, the least we can give you is a decent bath, right?" Mikey laughs nervously and Ray smiles looking genuinely grateful.

"We have dinner at seven, but you could come up after that?" Mikey offers trying to think of what time they would be finished. "We should be done around eight-thirty?"

Ray smiles and nods. "Thank you, really. I took a look at those baths yesterday and they did look a little gruesome," he laughs and then throws his towel back over his shoulder.

"Great, I'll let Frank know you're coming up, he'll be happy."

Ray laughs. "Ah Frankie's great. Right, you need to get back above decks, I don't want you to get hurt."

Mikey swallows and nods, feeling something odd twist in his stomach. "I yeah, I will. See you later," he smiles and walks back up the corridor and back up the flight of stairs, trying to ignore the pair of eyes on him and the odd nervous but excited feeling in his chest that he just invited a crew member up to use his first class suite bathroom.

For some strange reason Mikey feels like he can't sit still throughout dinner. He's uncomfortable and he feels restless and all he wants to do is return to their suite and wait for Ray to come up to their deck. He didn't tell Gerard or Frank and figures that they will find out when he comes up anyway, so keeps quiet until there's a knock on the main door.

Frank walks across from where he is lay on the couch and opens the door. His face is surprised but happy when he sees Ray standing there in his dirty work clothes.

"Hey man, you okay?" Frank asks and motions for Ray to step inside of the cabin. Ray nods and pats Frank on his shoulder before turning to face him as he closes the door.

"I'm good, you?" Ray replies and looks around the cabin with wide eyes. "By the looks of things you're doing pretty good too..." Ray laughs and Frank nods sheepishly.

"Yeah, Gerard takes care of me..." Frank admits. "So, what can we do for you? You want a drink?"

Ray scratches the back of his neck and smiles as he sees Mikey open the door and walk in to the room.

"I told Ray he could come use our bathroom." Mikey speaks quickly and smiles at Ray. He's dressed in his dinner suit now, his tie loose around his neck and top button open and Ray can't help but think he looks gorgeous.

Ray nods, smiles and then turns to Frank. "Is that alright Frankie?"

Franks taken back but nods. "Yeah, sure, of course!"

Ray smiles and as Mikey motions towards the bathroom door he follows, feeling a little awkward.

When they enter the bathroom Mikey lets Ray walk in and then closes the door. Ray stands there silently, looking around the large bathroom.

"Okay, bath towels are here and there is fresh soap here. We have a spare robe too if you need that?"

"Please, if you don't mind?" Ray feels the need to double check and Mikey stands there and rolls his eyes.

"I wouldn't have invited you up if it wasn't alright." Mikey offers and Ray moves his hands up to the neck of his shirt and starts to unbutton it.

Mikey tenses and quickly turns around to leave the room through his door and then stops and turns back around."Do you need any clean clothes?" he asks and Ray finishes opening his buttons, shrugging his shirt off his shoulders from his body. Mikey swallows hard and tries to look anywhere but Ray's perfectly toned arms and tanned stomach. His chest and biceps are toned, probably from the work he does down in the engine rooms, but his stomach a little lower down is less defined, leaving a small pocket of flesh that looks awfully comfortable and Mikey thinks it would feel nice to rest his head against.

Ray looks grateful but shakes his head. "No I'll only just get dirty again." Ray laughs "But thank you, you're generous."

Mikey feels a blush starting to creep up his neck and across his cheeks as Ray is now working on the button on his dirty slacks. He pops it open quickly and unzips them, letting them fall down his hips and in to a pool on the floor. Now he's stood in his off-white coloured cotton boxers, they cover down to the knee and look rather uncomfortable.

Ray only smiles and walks from the pool of clothes on the floor and turns to the bath to turn the water on, hot jets of water starting to fill the bath tub.

Mikey stands there for a few seconds before he gestures to his room. "I'm just going to...yeah..." He swallows hard and walks away from the door. He sees Ray starting to pull at his underwear and quickly turns away. He turns around a few moments later and Ray has pushed the door to, but not closed it completely.

Mikey sits on his bed and pulls his book out as he hears Ray turn off the water and climb in to the bath. He isn't sure why he feels so tense or on edge, but as he turns the pages on his book Mikey can't even remember what the words on the previous page meant.

He does settle however, plunging his mind in to his novel and concentrating on the words until he hears Ray step from the bath and the water starting to drain from the tub. He sits up quickly and sets his book on the bedside table before glancing over to the bathroom. Ray didn't shut the door completely and the door has opened even more so, and all Mikey can see is Ray standing there with a towel around his waist, muscles flexing on his arms as he uses his hands to towel dry his hair.

Ray looks up and catches Mikey looking at him. He only smirks and turns around, letting the towel around his middle fall to the floor. Mikey blushes again but this time he feels that something stirring in his stomach again, his face red and hot. He stands up to close the door but then sits down again, taking his book from the table and opening at where he left off, trying to concentrate on the words again.

When Ray walks out of the bathroom and in to Mikey's room fully clothed again Mikey's not sure on where to put his eyes. He places his book down on the bed and stares at it for a moment before looking up at Ray who is smiling down at him.

"Thank you for that, I feel human again..." Ray offers with a smile and Mikey licks his lips, throat and mouth suddenly dry.

"I didn't do anything, but you're welcome." His throat is still dry and he could really use a glass of whiskey round about now. "Are you staying for drinks? I think Frankie is setting up a card game."

Ray nods and grins. "That sounds awesome." He gestures towards he door that leads from Mikey's room in to the shared living room. "Want to go through?"

Mikey nods and lifts himself up from the bed and follows Ray in to the living room. Frank and Gerard are already sat on the couch around the coffee table drinking from short whiskey glasses, talking to each other and laughing between themselves.

"All freshened up?" Gerard asks with a smile and Mikey has to hold his breath for a moment because he's not sure where this is going to go. He's sure Gerard isn't upset that he invited Ray up to the cabin, especially as he is Frank's friend.

"Yeah, thank you so much!" Ray says with a grin and Frank motions towards the other couch facing them across the coffee table.

"Sit down, we're having a few drinks." Frank motions and Ray nods, feeling a little awkward but sits down quickly and watches as Mikey follows. He sits down next to Ray on the couch and watches as Frank leans forward to the table and take two more glasses from the tray, taking the top from the decanter and pour them both a drink, topping his and Gerard's up a little too.

Mikey feels strange, and he's not sure if it's the couple glasses of brandy he's had or if it's the way that Ray keeps glancing at him, right out of the corner of his eye and it's driving him insane. It's these subtle looks, not bold enough for Gerard or Frank to notice (or at least he hopes not) but Mikey feels that there is this heat, right on him in the form of Ray's eyes.

The worst part is, he's sure he's enjoying it too.

They play poker, not for the money but for fun as Frank runs to his and Gerard's room and finds some lose change, walking back into the room and setting it down on the table. Ray empties his pockets too and it's not much, but he knows that it's not about the betting or the winning tonight, it's about spending time with his old friend and his family, about getting to know them.

"You ready?" Frank asks with a grin and they nod.

Ray reaches forward to his glass of brandy and sips at it slowly but sees Frank scowling at him.

"That is not how you used to drink brandy, Toro." Frank tuts and shakes his head before reaching over to the decanter and pours them all more alcohol in to their glasses.

"I was trying to make a good impression..." Ray scolds but laughs anyway as he picks up his glass again to drink a little more.

"Hey, you don't need to impress us." Mikey stares at him with honest eyes and Ray smiles back, a full and genuine smile and something in Mikey's stomach twists, deep down and he takes a hold of his glass of brandy, quickly swigging some in his mouth. He doesn't even know why he's so nervous around Ray, why he has this unusual twisting sensation in his belly and why looking at Ray does all of these things to him.

"I wanted to impress you." Ray stares at him. "All of you," he adds quickly as he snaps his head around to Frank and Gerard.

Gerard shakes his head. "Anybody that Frankie trusts, we trust." He nods, agreeing with himself and smiles over to Ray. "You're a good guy, Frankie tells me."
Frank grins at Ray and raises his glass towards him. Ray laughs a little, embarrassed but holds his glass up to the air before taking another swig.

Their poker game ends past midnight and by the time it's time for Ray to return back to steerage he's not sure he can walk that far. He does though, hugging them all before he leaves. Frank pulls him in to a hug by his hand, patting his back hard and telling him how good it was to see him. Gerard's hug is a little looser, a little more restrained as he hugs him and watches as Frank drags Gerard towards their bedroom.

Mikey walks Ray to the door and stands there, not really knowing what to do with himself.

"Thank you for inviting me up, I had a great time." Ray smiles.

"It's no problem." Mikey offers and still the tension is there, he's unsure and a little drunk and his head is really starting to hurt. Brandy headaches are the worst for him.

"I'll see you around?" Ray asks hopeful and Mikey nods.

"Yeah, sure." He nods quickly, head starting to pound now but he doesn't have much time to think about that as Ray steps forward and pulls him in for a hug. It's tight, Ray's arms around his middle, wrapping around him completely as he's rigid for a moment before he slowly relaxes in to the embrace, resting his head on Ray's shoulder, arms still unsure of where they need to be.

"Thank you." Ray mumbles against Mikey's shoulder before pulling back and opening the door.

"You're welcome." Mikey calls out as he watches Ray start to stumble down the deck, heading towards the stairs for steerage.

Mikey closes the door after a few moments and rubs at his face, head pounding now as he makes his way to his bedroom.


April 12th 1912 -

The next morning Mikey wakes early and eats breakfast on the decking again only this time Frank and Gerard are still sleeping. He watches the waves as he picks at his bacon and drinks the last few mouthfuls of coffee. He feels different this morning, that strange feeling in his stomach is still there and he's not too interested in his food either.

When he's finished eating some and picking at most of his breakfast Mikey decides to take a walk. Frank and Gerard still aren't up and he doesn't feel any want to knock on their bedroom door to wake them (because he's never sure what he might find) so he pulls on his waistcoat and forgets his tie and leaves the suite through the main door in the living room.

He doesn't even realise where he's walking until he sees the crew passage sign high on the walls as he steps from the stairs. He stops for a moment and looks around before he starts to walk down a random corridor. At the end of the corridor he can see a man walking towards him and it's only when he gets closer he can see Ray in his eye line.

Ray smiles wide and stops just as he gets to Mikey.

"Hey, what are you doing down here?" Ray asks and Mikey remembers his stern voice from yesterday telling him he shouldn't be down in steerage. Today though he doesn't have his expensive pocket watch with him or any money in his pockets.

"I wanted to take a walk, somehow ended up down here again..." Mikey states and feels a little awkward because Ray's brows are furrowed and he can tell that he is about to tell Mikey to go back above deck.

"You really shouldn't be taking walks down here, Mikey." Ray tells him and he tries to use a stern voice but a smile cracks through and he laughs a little. "So...if you like it down here so much, you up for a party tonight in steerage?" he asks and then shrugs quickly. "You can bring Frankie, of course. And your brother?"

Mikey swallows hard yet again and nods before he even has time to process what a party in third actually means. "That sounds great. Frank's always talking about the good times he's had with his old friends."

"Awesome!" Ray grins and looks genuinely taken back by the fact that Mikey has even agreed to come down for the party. "I finish my shift at six, but you have dinner then right?"

Mikey nods. "Yeah, around seven."

Ray cocks his head to the side before speaking again. "Okay so, come down after dinner? We party all night down here anyway..." Ray laughs and Mikey nods with a breathy one too.

"It sounds great, really." Mikey speaks and starts to feel a bubble of excitement starting to build in his stomach, adding to the building tension already there.

"Great! I eh, I really need to head off now..." Ray motions towards the opposite corridor and staircase leading lower in the ship and Mikey nods.

"Of course, I'm sorry for keeping you."

Ray laughs and shakes his head. "No, it was a nice surprise to see you Mikey, I had an awesome time last night."

Mikey licks his lips and tries not to grin too much. "I'll see you tonight then..." Mikey confirms.

"Yeah, great! See you then MikeyWay," Ray concludes and walks past Mikey, patting him on his shoulder.

Mikey blinks a few times before starting to walk back to the stairs that lead to the higher decks. He tries to remind himself that there are going to be many, many people at this party including Frank and possibly his brother, but that doesn't seem to matter right now because all Mikey can hear is Ray calling him by his full name and that feeling in his stomach is starting to feel even stronger now, and the scariest thing is he thinks he might like it.

Once he heads back up to the first class deck he walks in to their suite to find Frank and Gerard sitting in their living room, still in their dressing gowns. They turn around quickly and stare at Mikey.

"I told you he'd be back, there were only so many places on the ship he could go," Frank mocks Gerard and Mikey looks confused.

"I only went for a walk?" Mikey is sure he hasn't been gone too long, but he knows how Gerard likes to overreact about everything.

Gerard rolls his eyes. "Yes I know that now, only I woke up and you weren't here. I was worried."

Mikey shrugs and walks across the room to sit down on the chair next to the sofa. "I woke up early and didn't want to wake you, I went for a walk." Mikey says before scratching at his knee through his slacks. "I saw Ray when I was out, he was heading down for his shift." he admits and Frank's head snaps towards him.

"We had an awesome time last night," Frank smiles and remembers their night of drink and card games, Ray and Frank catching up and Gerard, Mikey and Ray getting to know one another. It was an awesome night and Frank felt extremely lucky to be able to stay in first when Ray went back down to crew, and when he remembers this morning that Ray had to work today because he's a member of the crew and not a passenger. Frank feels incredibly lucky all of the time though, and there isn't a day that goes by where something lavish or expensive doesn't make Frank grateful for what he has.

Mikey nods and agrees because he really did have an awesome time last night. "So...Frank invited us to a party tonight, down in third." Mikey announces and Gerard looks very taken back by what Mikey's just said.

"He's invited us all down to third to party?" Frank asks and Mikey nods. "Awesome! Man, I haven't been to a real party in forever..." Frank speaks fast with a smile on his face until he turns to Gerard to see his face a little less excited.

"You want to go?" Mikey asks and Frank nods.

"Of course!" He says and turns to look at Gerard. "That's if you don't mind?"

Gerard shakes his head. "No sure, of course not. I think I'm going to pass though, I really need to work on that commission painting."

"You sure?" Frank asks and reaches out for Gerard's hand to hold. Gerard nods and smiles and pulls Frank's hand up with his own to kiss his knuckles.

"Of course, just look after my baby brother okay?" Gerard jokes but Frank knows he really means it because apart from Frank, Mikey is his world and he would do anything in his power to keep Mikey from harm.

Mikey rolls his eyes and shakes his head at Gerard's reply. "I can take care of myself, you know," he insists and Gerard laughs.

"I know, but you'll be out with third class passengers and I want Frank to look out for you, alright?" Gerard offers and Mikey groans but nods. "You are still underage for drinking, you know?"

Mikey groans again. "How could I possibly forget?"

Gerard laughs and kisses Frank's knuckles against and Mikey can't sit still for some reason, excitement taking over as he starts to think about this evening.

"Frankie, can you find me something to wear, please?" Mikey asks because he's only just realised what Ray keeps telling him, about being down in third with his first class status very much on show. He knows Frank has some less fancy shirts with him too, because he hates to lounge around in his shirts like Mikey and Gerard do.

Frank laughs and Gerard laughs a little too, even though the thought of his brother being in third scares him. "Sure, you need a comfortable shirt?" Frank mocks and Mikey scoffs.

"My crisp white shirts are very comfortable, thank you." Mikey tries to argue back but it's not very convincing. His crisp white shirts are a little uncomfortable even though they are made with the finest silk.

"Mmhm. Sure." Frank agrees with a smirk on his face. "Want to go and find something after breakfast?"

Mikey nods with a smile on his face and a strange tugging sensation in his stomach. "That would be great."

Mikey waits in his room while Frank and Gerard have breakfast. He leaves them to have the decking to themselves and engrosses himself in his book that he is currently reading, because when he reads he apparently doesn't think about Ray too much. He can't however stop thinking of the party tonight. He's scared and excited all at the same time and he knows that a third class party below decks is not somewhere somebody of his status would be, but he is really past caring right now and besides, he will have Frank with him.

When Frank finishes his breakfast he goes back to his bedroom to get dressed and emerges ten minutes later and calls Mikey from his room to the living room. He has a few shirts set out in front of him on the coffee table and Mikey walks in with a knowing and excited smile pulling on his lips.

"Which one are you wearing?" Mikey asks picking up a shirt and rests it against his chest. Whatever way he goes about this the shirt is still going to be a little large on him and probably a little too short because he is far too skinny and tall and Frank's body is quite different to his.

"I'm easy, I'll wear anything," Frank adds with a smirk and Mikey rolls his eyes again because Frank really does have a sense of humour.

"So I can wear any of these and I'll blend in a little more?" he asks and Frank nods.

"Yeah, just wear one of these with a pair of slacks, not your dress pants."

"Okay, slacks and this shirt..." Mikey picks up another shirt and holds it to his chest before deciding this is the shirt he is going to go with. "I can do this..." he adds because there is that feeling in his chest again and it just will not budge.

"You are going to have a great time, it will be good for you to see a third class party."

Mikey's stomach doesn't settle with Frank's words, it only spurs it on because it's just a reminder that Ray is going to be there too, and for some reason he just can't stop thinking about him. "Ray is a really cool guy." Mikey blurts out and Frank laughs at him as he picks the other few variations of shirt up from the coffee table and starts to fold them.

"Yeah, he's a really good guy." Frank agrees and picks the shirts up and walks back to his room to put them back.

Mikey stands there for a second, still holding the shirt up to his chest and thinking of a genius plan of how he is going to survive this evening.

Mikey doesn't eat much when they are at lunch or dinner. At both meals he pushes the majority of the food around his plate and sips on his water trying to ignore the same feeling in his stomach. Frank notices his strange behaviour and asks him if he's okay a few times but he shrugs it off nothing more is said, but he's sure Frank can tell exactly what he is thinking, even if he's not sure on what he's thinking himself right now.

Once they have eaten dinner they arrive back at the cabin to get dressed. Mikey pulls the shirt that Frank's lending him on quickly and refrains from tucking it in to his slacks because he's sure that's a little too formal for where they are going. The shirt feels scratchy against his chest and he isn't used to having longer short sleeves either and he starts to feel uncomfortable with his arms.

Frank comes in a few moments later and dressed and whistles at Mikey. "Looking good Mr Way!" Frank laughs and Mikey scowls.

"Isn't that something you should save for when you speak to my brother?" Mikey asks and Frank shrugs, the smirk still lingering on his face.

"So, you ready to see how us alley rats party?" Frank jokes and Mikey truly looks scared. "Hey, you'll be fine! You have me and Ray..." Frank notes and Mikey's stomach takes a leap again.

"Yeah..." Mikey replies and pushes Frank towards the door.

They walk down to third class the way that Mikey has memorised in the last few days. He knows exactly where he is going, only a little further past the points where he's bumped in to Ray both times. When they grow nearer to the main room of third class they can already hear the loud music and loud cheers and the stench of beer too fills their noses as they walk further.

When they arrive at the door Frank walks in first and Mikey follows, starting to feel very out of place as people start to stare at him. He's aware that he still looks like he's from money, even though he's dressed down in whatever Frank's given him. He keeps close to Frank and lets the loud music fill his ears, the beat of the drums rattling his chest like he's never felt before. This is a different type of music to what he's used to, and he's never quite heard anything like it. He's enjoying it already though, the beat is strong and it sounds strangely happier than any orchestra he's had to listen to at a dinner party in first class in various places.

As they walk through the crowd Frank soon spots Ray and pushes through a group of people to get to him, reaching back and pulling Mikey by the arm. It's even louder once they stand next to people having conversations and Mikey's starting to feel slightly claustrophobic until he suddenly sees Ray standing right in front of him grinning. He didn't even realise that Frank had dragged them right over to him already and he really wasn't prepared for what he was about to see.

"Hey! I'm so glad you came!" Ray shouts over the music and conversation and puts a hand on both Frank and Mikey' shoulder. Mikey feels his skin instantly heat up and prickle. Ray grins at them both at them both and puts his lips to Mikey's ear.

"You want a drink?" Ray asks right in to Mikey's ear and he shivers a little, trying not to let Ray see. He nods and Ray grins. "Beer?" He asks and Mikey nods again because really, he isn't going to say no to him right now, not with his voice right in his ear, breath against his neck and an arm around his shoulder.

He asks Frank the same and he nods too and before Mikey knows Ray's arm is not on his shoulder anymore and he's away finding them drinks. He comes back a few moments later with three pints of beer and hands a sticky glass to them both, saving the third for himself. He quickly raises his glass and shouts cheers and they clink their glasses against the others', beer spilling from the sides and down on to their hands.

Frank leans over to Mikey and shouts. "I've just seen a couple of old friends, you alright here?"

Mikey licks his lips and tries to be confident. He can do this. "Sure, yeah." He smiles at Ray and Frank grins and is already pushing his way through the crowds.

Mikey realises that he still has beer across his hands and instead of wiping it down his slicks he brings his hand up to lick the beer away from his fingers. He sees Ray watching him though and he can't help the flush of colour that covers his face.

"So, you like it down here so far?" Ray moves closer to Mikey to speak directly in to his ear again and Mikey nods quickly before awkwardly moving his head so that he can speak in to Ray's ear.

"Yeah, great atmosphere!" Mikey half shouts, half speaks in to Ray's ear and he can smell the faint scent of soap on Ray's curly hair. He smells good and he suddenly remembers the smell is his soap from his bathroom. Mikey pulls back and takes a large gulp of his beer and Ray looks at him with a inquisitive face.

Mikey suddenly feels self conscious. "What?" he shouts over to Ray and laughs, trying to relax himself.

"I just didn't think you'd be a beer kinda guy?" Ray asks and Mikey laughs a little more this time, staring down at his beer before he takes another few gulps.

"Gerard's my big brother, and he's always liked beer..." Mikey speaks next to Ray's ear again and this time he can smell his own breath against Ray's skin, the smell of beer overwhelming. "We like brandy too though, in case you couldn't tell last night." Mikey laughs and Ray laughs too, moving closer to talk in to Mikey's ear again.

"Yeah, brandy is good." Ray takes a gulp of his beer and wipes his mouth on the back of his hand. "You look good in this shirt, is it Frank’s?" Ray mentions and uses his free hand to place a hand on Mikey's shoulder, feeling the material against his hand.

Mikey swallows hard and tries to compose an answer. "Yeah, Frank’s." He laughs awkwardly. "How did you ever guess?"

Ray smirks. "Well it's a little too short on you..." Ray lets his eyes drop down to Mikey's waist and he really does feel self conscious now, using his free hand to tug on the bottom of his shirt. Ray laughs but a smile is evident on his face and he takes the hand that Mikey is using to pull his shirt down, and pulls him towards the band.

Mikey starts to panic, wondering where Ray is dragging him. "Where are we going? Ray?" He asks quickly but Ray doesn't answer, only leads him by the arm through the crowd and stops when he's in the middle of the dance floor.

"We're going to dance!" Ray shouts over the music because now they are right next to the band and it's loud. Ray quickly takes their beers and sets them down on the small raised stage that they next to and it's then that Mikey notices that Frank is one of the people playing guitar with a huge grin on his face when he spots Mikey and Ray. Mikey remembers that Frank used to play guitar and as the current song ends and bursts in to another Ray grips Mikey by the hips and pulls him in quickly, much to Mikey's surprise.

"Just follow me, okay?" Ray shouts in to Mikey's ear and he's never felt so terrified and excited all at the same time. He's pressed close to Ray and he can still smell his soap on his hair and neck and face and as Ray tightens his grip on Mikey's hips he moves so that his hands are gripping on to Ray's arms, tight and solid as they start to move. Mikey has no idea what the dance is, and neither does Ray but the beat of the song helps them move along with everybody else on the floor, jumping and moving together and Mikey can't help but feel completely liberated as he moves on his feet, pressed close against Ray and feeling his hands on his hips.

When the song ends and starts to blend in to the next, Ray lets go of Mikey's hips and he would be lying if he said he didn't miss the contact. Instead Ray grabs their drinks from the small stage and hands one to Mikey. He's panting slightly and takes large gulps from his beer again and Ray still looks surprised. Mikey quickly finishes the beer and sets the empty glass back down before looking up and smiling at Ray.

"Frank looks to be having fun..." Mikey leans in to speak and Ray nods with a grin.

"I think he misses playing in a band!" Ray adds and Mikey looks over to Frank who is playing guitar with a wide smile still, playing with his old friends and looking completely at home with the rest of the people here.

"Another drink?" Ray asks.

"Please!" Mikey looks around at the crowd again and starts to follow Ray through the crowd. Ray stops at the table that has barrels of beer on and pours Mikey a drink in to a glass. Mikey's not even sure if the glass is clean but he's not bothered because when Ray hands him the drink he feels their fingers brush and another bolt of something runs up his spine, stretching out across the skin and giving him a chill again.

"I think we should dance some more." Ray suggests and really all Mikey wants to do is stand still, drink his beer and have Ray talk right in to his ear a little more but he nods his answer anyway, because dancing that close to Ray again seems like a very good idea.

After Mikey's fourth pint of beer he starts to feel a little sick. He's sure it's the combination of alcohol he's not used to, dancing around the room and the way Ray's hands feel on his hips but whatever the reason, he needs air.

"Want to go out on deck, I need some air?" Mikey tells Ray as they stop dancing at the end of the song and he takes his beer, drinking the last few mouthfuls.

"Sure, are you alright?" Ray asks suddenly concerned.

"Fine, just need some air."

Ray nods and motions over to Frank who is still playing guitar to say that he's going up to deck. Frank nods and continues to play.

The air on deck hits Mikey as they climb the steps and he suddenly starts to feel even sicker than he did before. Ray is right behind him and as he reaches the deck he turns around to face him.

“You have a little colour back in your cheeks now,” Ray comments and Mikey feels himself blushing a little. The pints of beer are still swishing around his stomach and his blood stream and he feels a little light-headed, but as Ray places a hand on his check before quickly taking it away again, he’s thankful for the Dutch courage.

“Tell me more about the ship.” Mikey asks as they start to walk forward, enjoying the breeze on his face and hands.

Ray laughs. “I don’t really know much about it.” He admits but Mikey shakes his head.

“Of course you know, you are responsible for making her move, Ray.” Mikey states and Ray laughs again only this time a little nervous because if there is one thing Ray isn’t used to it’s compliments.

“I’m not the one that does any of the work though, I mostly supervise.” Ray admits.

Mikey stops walking and turns to Ray quickly. “No, you are important. And…” Mikey stops what he is saying and sighs, taking a deep breath in. “You are the kind of important that matters. You mean something, I just. Everybody on this ship knows who I am and I’m still not important.” He concludes and Ray shakes his head.

“You don’t realise how intelligent you are, really. You’re going to university, to-”

Mikey cuts him off with a scoff.

“Yes, to a course that I know nothing of and do not even want to attend.” Mikey admits and Ray places a subtle hand on his arm. “The only reason we even attend university is to find a suitable wife, and I know I don’t want that.”

Ray squeezes Mikey’s arm. “What do you want?”

Mikey takes a deep breath in and exhales sharply. “I just…I don’t know.” He uses his free hand to rub at his face and then, he just goes for it.

“You didn’t close the door. Last night, you didn’t shut the door…” Mikey speaks quickly before turning to look at Ray. He’s calm, face relaxed and his hand still holding Mikey’s arm.

“No, I didn’t close the door.” Ray nods and his calm exterior still isn’t faltering.

Mikey blinks a couple times before acting quickly, moving forward to press his lips against Ray’s. There is still enough alcohol in his system to help him along but as his lips meet with Ray’s soft and full mouth, he knows he’s made the right decision.

Their lips stay pressed together and still for a few moments before Ray pulls away, his face calm but his eyes a littler wider than usual.

“Mikey, you’re…you…” Ray tries to speak but Mikey ends up cutting him off.

“No, I’m not drunk. And yes, I do know what I’m doing and for once, It’s actually what I want to do.” He takes a deep breath before continuing. “I had a few beers because so that I wouldn’t be so terrified around you…I like you, Ray.” Mikey offers, amazed by his new found confidence.

Ray moves the hand that he has resting on Mikey’s arm and strokes his way up to his shoulder, squeezing gently before moving his fingers to brush against the side of Mikey’s neck, using his position to pull him in closer. Mikey closes his eyes before their lips even meet again and when they do his stomach twists, excitement and nerves threatening to get the better of him because he can’t actually believe that he is on the deck of the Titanic, kissing Ray and feeling the best he’s felt in an extremely long time.

Ray is a good kisser. No, in fact Ray is an amazing kisser and Mikey thinks as he holds on to Ray’s shirt, fingers brushing the metal of his braces as he opens his mouth a little more, letting Ray’s tongue meet his own. Ray has a hand on Mikey’s hip and the other at the back of his neck, fingers brushing the hair and skin, making Mikey shiver in to his touch.

Behind them Frank is climbing the stairs to the deck, about to call out their names until he spots them. He double takes for a moment, taking in the sigh before him with wide eyes before smirking and turning around to head back down below deck. He shakes his head a little with a smile on his face.

A few moments of kissing later Ray pulls back from the embrace and smiles, still stroking the skin at the back of Mikey’s neck.

“I really like you, Mikey…” Ray whispers and Mikey grins.

“So, are you going to tell me more about this ship or not?”

They walk around the decks for a while, Ray showing Mikey certain parts of the ship that he does know about and stealing the odd kiss when the deck is quiet. It’s as if a floodgate has been opened and now they have realised that they are both on the same page, neither wanting that rush of adrenaline to fade.

When they stop walking again and lean against the railings of the ship they stare up, looking at the different star constellations. It's then that they see a star shooting across the sky and they both laugh a little nervous, blinking as they stare up at the clear night sky.

"You're meant to wish on those stars you know." Ray points at where the shooting star had just been.

Mikey hums. "Yeah, I think you are."

Ray licks his lips and turns back to face Mikey. "What would you wish for, Mikey?"

Mikey lets his gaze fall back from the night sky and back on to Ray. He's standing there, looking stunning in the dim light and all Mikey wants to do is to move closer to his chest and bury his head right in to his neck, smell hissoap again and just close his eyes, to feel content.

"Something I can't have." Mikey admits and looks back up to the stars.

Ray licks his lips again and lets his hand brush up against Mikey's.

When it's time for Ray to leave however Mikey doesn't want this to end. It’s late though and Ray knows that he has a shift to be up for in a short while.

“Must you go?” Mikey asks with a disappointed face, enjoying the feel of Ray’s hand on his hip.

“I have a morning shift, start at 8. I might need to get some sleep for that…” Ray smiles when Mikey pouts. “I can see you after my shift, though?” he offers and Mikey smiles and nods.

When Frank arrives back at the suite he finds Gerard in their bedroom, sat up in bed reading one of his many books that he travels with. He kicks his shoes off next to the bed and starts to undress.

Gerard stops reading and places the open book down on the bed. "Did you have a good night?" he asks as he watches Frank as he unbuttons his shirt and lets it fall from his shoulders. Gerard hums in appreciation and lets his eyes fall to where Frank's hands are working on his pants, unbuttoning and unzipping before he lets them fall down past his hips and to the floor. Frank giggles a little before climbing over Gerard at the foot of the bed and crawls up to where his lover is sat waiting for him.

"Hi..." Frank grins and Gerard laughs lightly, leaning forward to kiss Frank. His lips taste of beer and Gerard licks his lips and hums.

"You taste like beer, you haven't tasted like beer for a long while..." Gerard muses and Frank laughs in agreement.

"Last time I drank beer was probably when I used to sneak you in to my underground parties." Frank teases and takes the book that is placed face down on the bed and closes it quickly, leaning over Gerard to set it on the floor. Gerard quirks his eyebrow but says nothing, watching Frank with an amused face as he settles himself back next to Gerard, sat in only his silk underwear. "I miss that, having to sneak you in to somewhere because you are too good for us all..."

Gerard's jaw is slack now as he stares at Frank, watching his mouth as he breathes slowly. He swallows hard, mind quickly flashing back to when Frank would sneak him in to his kind of places, when they would fumble around in the dark and return home to Gerard's apartment that his parent's paid for to spend the night with each other. It was desperate and needy and exciting but they have both grown up since then, Gerard taking his art more seriously and giving Frank a stable home.


Frank grins and lets out a small giggle before launching forward and attaching his lips to Gerard's, using the force of the kiss to open his lover’s mouth and slip his tongue inside. Gerard groans when he does so and opens a little wider so that Frank can start to make the kiss wet, licking around his mouth and scraping the tip of his tongue over Gerard's front teeth. As he does so he shifts on the bed, moving down to undo Gerard's robe so that he can get to the skin he knows is underneath and when he does so he moves his hand right up to Gerard's left nipple, pinching quickly and waits to feel Gerard gasp in to his mouth, which he does.

As Frank grins in to the kiss and tweaks the nipple again Gerard pulls back to gasp this time, his moan filling the quiet room. Once he's done pinching the sensitive nubs he lets his hand drift down Gerard's chest and over his stomach before he pushes the tips of his fingers past Gerard's silk boxers, drifting further until he reaches his cock, already half hard. Frank takes a hold of him in his hand with a firm grip.

"I want you in my mouth..." Frank mutters against Gerard's cheek and he feels his lover's moan vibrate against his lips. He smirks and kisses the skin before pulling his hand from the silk underwear and starts to move his body down towards the foot of the bed.

When Frank takes Gerard in to his mouth he tries to fight the urge to snap his hips up, the feeling of Frank's mouth around him almost too much at first but as Frank starts up a steady rhythm of up, down and repeat he starts to melt in to the feel of it, relaxing his muscles that are aching from painting in awkward positions and tries to just feel what Frank is doing to him, what he is giving to him and how he is trying to make him feel the best he can. Frank does all of his usual tricks, wet and messy just how Gerard likes it, a small amount of teeth in just the right places and soon enough his pale, milky hips are shaking, thighs too as he scrunches his eyes shut and lets go. Frank takes all he has to offer and pulls off a few moments later when Gerard shifts his hips, a clear sign of being too sensitive and crawls back up to the head of the bed where Gerard is lay panting.

Gerard hold up his finger to signal a minute's rest and Frank laughs, nodding as he pushes his own silk boxers from his body, down past his hips and lets them pool around his ankles as he takes himself in his hand. He sighs, letting the noise pass his lips and as soon as Gerard realises what he is doing, he turns on to his side and moves his hand down to bat Frank's own away.

Frank grins with his face right next to Gerard's as his lover takes him in his hand, wasting no time in starting up a steady beat, moving his hand up and down quickly. He knows not to tease Frank when he's had any alcohol because he knows he doesn't have the patience, that Frank can't last very long when he's needy and wanting like this and Gerard secretly loves it because although he loves to make love to Frank and take his time, Gerard really does love getting him off as quick as he can, trying to beat his invisible record on how long it takes him to come.

He doesn't win this time, but Frank is soon bucking his hips and spilling in to Gerard's hand with a long gasp as he buries his face in Gerard's neck and lets go.

"Mm..." Frank whines in to Gerard's skin and lets his eyes flutter open slowly, only able to see pale and sweaty skin. He kisses that skin gently and Gerard hums in response.

Gerard then pulls the sheets over their bodies and settles down with Frank in his arms "Sleep, Frankie..." he mumbles against Frank's matted hair and allows his own eyes to flutter closed.


When Mikey gets back to his suite he feels an odd bubbling in his chest right down to his stomach, and he’s pretty sure he likes it. He says goodnight to his brother and Frank and wanders in to his room, not even realising when his fingers meet his lips, brushing over the skin where Ray kissed him. He undresses quickly and sets the shirt that he borrowed from Frank on the chair next to his bed and works on his slacks. He pops the button open and lets them drop to the floor, not even bothering to pick them up and hang them like he usually would. He leaves his silk boxers on though and turns the lamp off before climbing in to bed.

The sheets feel heavy on his body so he kicks them back a little letting the cool air hit his skin as he tries to get comfortable by pushing his head back in to the feather pillow. He feels incredibly tense, on edge and he just wants to relax in bed and fall asleep slowly thinking of Ray's lips on his. That's when he feels that burning sensation in his groin, the hot buzz of arousal as he thinks about how his lips felt against Ray's, how Ray had held him by the hips and kissed him, tongue in his mouth and it felt so amazing. With the images of Ray kissing him Mikey slowly trails his right hand across his chest and down his belly to touch himself through his underwear. The silk feels amazing against his dick and as he uses his hand to rub himself through the expensive material he sighs and bites his lip, focusing on the memory of Ray's tongue in his mouth, hot and warm and wet.

After a few moments of rubbing himself he starts to feel himself grow to full arousal and knows he needs to touch himself properly. He moves his hand from the front of his underwear and snakes a hand under the waistband and in to the boxers. He grips himself tight at the base and squeezes a little before starting to move his hand. He gets frustrated after a few strokes because he with the constraints of his underwear he can't get a good enough angle to stroke himself how he really wants to and with a reluctant sigh he moves his hand and pulls it out, using both hand to push the garment down. He lets the silk pool around his ankles and he moves his legs to brush the skin against the smooth material because wherever those boxers are, the silk feels amazing against any part of his body.

Now he can get a good grip of his dick he takes himself back in his hand and hisses as his thumb now has room to press against the slit on the head, collecting pre-come before using his thumb to massage the head a little more. He tries to keep quiet and he knows that Gerard and Frank's room is all the way through the living room, but he's not too sure on how thick these walls of the ship really are, and he doesn't want to have to face anybody at breakfast the next morning and explain just where the moans were coming from in one of the most lavish state rooms on the ship.

To try and reign his moans he tries to concentrate on something, but that something turns out to be Mikey fantasising about Ray. He fixates on his mouth and how his tongue felt against his own, the hot push of Ray's tongue against the roof of his mouth, the slide if their wet lips and Mikey is really having trouble trying to contain himself now. It never does take Mikey long to come when he's masturbating but now he has something to fuel the fire he's about to orgasm a lot quicker than usual.

Mikey comes with a few more strokes and head raised from the pillows, chin against his chest as he watches himself unload, feeling a sudden rush of relief as his muscles tighten only to relax again. He feels fluid, boneless and he can't stop he smile from creeping across his lips and that strange feeling in his stomach to return only this time that feeling isn't irritating and doesn't make him feel anxious, only excited for what is to follow.

When Ray gets down to his shared cabin he’s alone; his crew mates are on different shifts to him or still out drinking and he can’t help but wish there was somebody else there for distraction. It feels different now he’s back down in third class, knowing Mikey is decks above him, pulling the thick sheets on his luxurious bed back and sleeping soundly. Ray sighs and strips down to his boxers, groaning when he crawls in to his bunk and feels his dick half hard and hot against his thigh. He groans as he lets his hand slip lower between the sheets and in to his boxers, taking a firm hold of his dick in his rough hand and squeezes, letting his eyes slip shut. He strokes a few times before stopping at the head, thumbing it a little before working himself to full arousal. He thinks about teasing himself for a while but he needs release, he’s tired and should already be asleep. He works his hand quicker now, his length slipping through his fisted hand as he tips his head back letting a moan slip from his throat.

When he’s close he tightens his fist and quickens his movements, pushing his hips up and gasps, balls tightening and suddenly images of Mikey are flashing behind his closed eyelids. He comes hard, muscles in his stomach and thighs tensing and relaxing again and again as he orgasms, panting against the side of his scratchy pillow.

He wipes his hand quickly on the sheets and readjusts himself in his cotton boxers before bringing both hands up to rub across his face. He feels a sudden rush of guilt and a sense that he can’t do this to Mikey, he can’t ruin him and his reputation.


April 13th 1912 –


When Mikey wakes up he feels strangely happy unlike the previous morning where he felt tense and on edge. He slips out of bed and remembers that his underwear is at the end of the bed where he left it. He smiles to himself and picks it up to pull on quickly before heading to the bathroom to bathe. He takes his time washing, letting his muscles relax in the warm water and the smell of soap sends his heart racing and stomach hurling when he remembers that is exactly how Ray smelt last night because he washed in the same bath tub that Mikey is in right now. He can't help the grin that spreads over his face and starts to hurry himself to get washed and dressed to see if he can catch Ray in the crew corridors before his shift.

Once he is dressed Mikey slips out of the cabin and takes his usual walk down from first to third class. He thinks he could probably take this walk with his eyes closed now and the route seems strangely like something he's been doing for years now, not days. When he reaches the third class staircase he starts to get nervous, thinking about last night, about the kiss and about what he thought about when he was touching himself but he pushes those thoughts out of his head and his stomach jumps when he sees Ray in person rushing towards him.

Mikey steps from the staircase and in to view. "Ray, I was just..."

Ray stops quickly and looks flustered. He's probably late and Mikey knows he shouldn't be down here again he just can't help himself.

"You really shouldn't be down here Mikey." Ray states and he really does look irritated.

Mikey bites his lip and nods. "I know I just, I wanted to-"

"You need to leave, Mikey." Ray's voice is annoyed and Mikey starts to feed incredibly foolish now.

"I'm sorry, I just wanted to see if you wanted to do something after your shift?" Mikey speaks quickly and doesn't give Ray the chance to cut him off but before Mikey has even finished speaking Ray is shaking his head.

"No, no Mikey." Ray sighs and rubs at his face. "This shouldn't. None of this should have happened, okay?"

Mikey tries to swallow but he suddenly feels a large lump in the back of his throat. He feels so foolish and even now all he wants is to be able to kiss Ray again, to feel those amazing lips on his.

"But I, I just-" Mikey tries to back his corner but he ends up stumbling over his words.

"You are a first class passenger Mikey. I'm steerage and crew, this can't continue." Ray insists and stops to look down at his old, tatty leather watch on his wrist. "I'm late for my shift, I need to go," he announces and starts to walk away.

Mikey goes to open his mouth to stop him but he can't figure out what he could say to make him stop, to have him take back what he's just said and to kiss him like he did last night.

When Mikey gets back up to first all he wants to do is climb back in to bed and stare at the ceiling and he does exactly that. When Frank and Gerard wake up and eat their breakfast Gerard comes in to Mikey's room.

"Oh, you're awake. Did you already have breakfast?" Gerard asks and Mikey ignores him. He steps closer to the bed and narrows his eyes. "Mikes?"

"I'm fine." Mikey snaps and quickly reverts back to his silence. Gerard sits down on the bed carefully and stares at his younger brother with a concerned face.

"Are you sure, do you want to talk?" Gerard asks and really he's used to his, Mikey having hormonal mood swings and sometimes he can't wait until Mikey reaches twenty and his mood swings subside.

"I'm fine. Just, I want some time alone." Mikey states and stares right up at the ceiling of the cabin, not once glancing at Gerard.

Gerard nods. "Alright, call me if you need anything." he offers and Mikey hums before turning on to his side and staring at the wall.

When Gerard walks back out of Mikey's room and in to the living room he sees Frank sitting on the couch still dressed in his robe. He smiles and Gerard sighs as he walks across the room and sits down next to Frank. His arms are instantly around Gerard and pull him down so that he's leaning on him.

"You alright?" Frank asks and kisses the top of Gerard's head because every once in a while Frank loves to hold Gerard in his arms and take care of him rather than it be the other way around like it usually is.

Gerard hums but Frank knows him too well. "Is he having a tantrum again?" Frank asks and Gerard nods against his chest. "Want me to go talk with him?" he continues and Gerard hums because if there is one thing that Frank can well is talk his younger brother out of a mood swing. He thinks it's the smaller age gap between Frank and Mikey that helps, but either way Gerard is always thankful to have Frank around when Mikey is upset because he hates to see him sad.

Frank kisses the top of Gerard's head again and eases himself out of their embrace and off of the couch, walking across to Mikey's room.

When he enters he sees Mikey on the bed, facing the wall. He sighs quietly to himself and wanders over to the bed where he sits down carefully.

"Mikes?" Frank asks and gets no response. He places a hand on Mikey's leg but he pulls it away, curling himself in to an even tighter position.

"He's an ass, isn't he..." Frank admits and he sees Mikey uncoil from his position a little. "I love him, but he's still an ass and I should have given you a heads up."

Mikey lets out a large breath he didn't realise he had been holding and shrugs. "Don't know what you are talking about..." he grumbles, face still against the large pillow.

"I saw you kissing, Mikes." Frank admits and he notices Mikey's body instantly tighten again. "If anyone is going to understand it's me or your brother."

Mikey quickly snaps around and looks at Frank with wide eyes. "You told my brother?" he asks with disbelief.

Frank's hands come up to motion his response. "No, of course not. That's up to you. What I'm trying to say is that Ray can be an ass, don't give up first try, alright?" Frank reaches out a hand to squeeze Mikey's ankle and this time he lets him.

"He doesn't want to see me." Mikey insists as he remembers how Ray treated him earlier in the day.

"He's an ass Mikey, I know him. The way he looked with you last night at the party and out on the decks...he likes you." Frank offers and hears Mikey scoff.

"He made it very clear that he feels it was a mistake..." Mikey insists and Frank shakes his head.

"No, I know he's really a good guy. It just takes some persistence and you should try again." Frank tries to reassure Mikey and it seems to be working because this time Mikey turns his body around fully, facing Frank and has a small smile trying to break across his face.

"What if he rejects me again?" Mikey asks with a disheartened look on his face and Frank squeezes his ankle again to try and add some clarity to what he's trying to get at.

"He won't. He likes you..." Frank smiles and Mikey follows suit, letting a small smile break across his lips, stretching the muscle until Frank can see some teeth. "Besides, if he does he's going to have me to answer to." Frank furrows his eyebrows and Mikey rolls his eyes.

"I can fight my own battles, you know." Mikey insists with a stern face and Frank has to laugh, because he's seen that face so many times on his older brother when he's being defensive.

"I know, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to look out for you." Frank offers and Mikey nods.

He squeezes Mikey's ankle once more for support and goes to leave the room. When he does Mikey calls out. "Hey Frankie..." he calls out and Frank stops to turn around.

"Yeah?" he asks, waiting for whatever it is Mikey has say still.

"Thank you." Mikey smiles and swings his legs off of the bed and on to the floor, not yet standing up though.

Frank grins. "No problem. Now, go fix things..." he concludes and walks from the room, closing the door behind him.


Ray can't help but hate himself for the majority of his shift. He's finding it hard to concentrate and he knows that the way he spoke to Mikey was unreasonable, and he also knows that he has feelings for him. That's the entire problem though, that he has all of these feelings for somebody that he really should not have feelings for. Ray tries to concentrate on managing boiler room two but he just can't forget the feel of Mikey's soft lips against his own, the way his tongue tasted of beer and how his small hips felt between his arms on the deck.

He's nearly finished his shift when it happens, when the main door to boiler room two bursts open and Mikey comes storming in along with a member of crew shouting at him from behind. Mikey stops and looks around before spotting Ray and walking right past the men working, shovelling coal in to the furnaces and to Ray, who is standing dumfounded.

"I need to talk to you." Mikey stands right in front of him and insists.

"You can't be down here!" The member of crew behind Mikey is still trying to shout over the noise of the engines and Ray steps forward, around Mikey to talk to him.

"It's alright, leave it to me." Ray shouts and the man nods, the frustrated look on his face apparent as he turns around and walks from the boiler room.

Ray turns back around and quickly grabs Mikey by the shoulders, hauling him out towards the door. When they are outside and the noise subsides a little Ray starts to talk.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Ray asks, voice stretched and stern.

Mikey shrugs. "I'm not a child that you can tell what to do. I know what I want and you can't change that." He insists and Ray stands there shocked, not even sure how he can answer him anymore.

"Just, wait here." Ray asks quickly and turns around to run back in to the boiler room. He finds his colleague Brain, and tells him that he's leaving early. Ray is pretty sure that he's owed some time anyway as he's worked far more than he ought to have since they set sail from Belfast before they docked in to Southampton for passengers to come aboard.

When Ray steps back out of the boiler room he looks at Mikey and sighs. "Come on, follow me."

Mikey remains silent and follows Ray through the corridors, also starting to remember the way to the boiler room. Mikey had found boiler room one and had run through the entire section to get to two, which is where the crew member spotted him and started to follow. By the look on Mikey's face though, he's intent on proving himself and nothing is going to stop him doing so.

When Ray stops outside a cabin Mikey assumes that it's his. He's right, as he opens the door he's met with a room of four beds, bunk beds and as Ray lets Mikey walk in first and follows closing the door he has his speech ready.

"You can't just treat me like I'm a child, you know." Mikey starts, suddenly feeling nervous as the adrenalin is starting to wear off. "Frank told me you're a good person, Ray. Why can't you just let me believe him?" Mikey throws his hands to his side and shrugs. "For the first time in my life I am fully aware of what I want."

Ray rubs at his face with dirty hands, his clothes a dark grey with smudges of black all across the front of his shirt from working. "I'm sorry, I should never have spoken to you like I did." Ray nods as if he's agreeing with his own apology. "I like you, and that scares me shitless!" Ray laughs and Mikey lets out a long breath that he's been holding deep in his lungs. "I like you and you're a first class passenger, Mikey," he sighs because whatever he looks at this, the situation is against them.

"You know I'm more than a first class ticket. I'm a person with feelings, and I've spent my entire life living to other peoples' expectations. " Mikey admits and as he's speaking he can feel his chest loosen, feel the relief of actually letting his feelings go for once. "I don't care if you're crew or in first. I like you."

Ray steps closer to Mikey now, who's standing with his back to the closed cabin door. As Ray gets close enough to press his body against Mikey he sighs again and whispers, "I like you too..."

Mikey licks his lips as he tries not to smile too wide but the effort is lost as his face stretches and Ray's does too, quickly sharing a glance before Ray presses his body forward against Mikey's and leans in to kiss him.

The kiss is slow again, hot tongues against the other as Ray presses his hips to Mikey's, his body weight pinning Mikey against the cabin door. Mikey moans at the back of his throat. Soon he feels Ray's growing hard on against his thigh and he can't help but push back, enjoying the feel of another body against his own and not just his own hand which is how it has always been.

Ray breaks the kiss after a minute and pants against Mikey's mouth. He gives him a small grin before rolling his hips and Mikey gasps, throwing his head back against the door with a thud.

When Ray moves a hand from Mikey's hips he moves it down to the front of Mikey's black dress pants and presses the palm of his hand against him, slow at first to test the waters but as Mikey groans and lets his head fall forward this time Ray takes that as the go ahead and squeezes. He continues to touch him for a few seconds before he moves both hands down to his pants button and looks at Mikey.

"Is this alright?" Ray asks and Mikey nods quickly. "You sure?" he double checks because he really needs to know that Mikey is one hundred percent alright with what he wants to do.

"Please..." Mikey nods and pants and Ray nods too before he pops the button of Mikey's pants open, using his long fingers to pull the zipper down and push the material past Mikey's hips and down to his thighs. When he gets to his underwear he groans.

"Silk, Jesus..." Ray whispers and Mikey bites his lip, fighting the urge to blush only instead he pushes his hips forward, hoping Ray will take the hint and do something.

Ray does take the hint, and takes the waist band of Mikey's underwear in his fingers and pushes those down too to join the pool of material that is already around his knees. Mikey is hard and starting to sweat, half naked and looking completely gorgeous. He gasps and has to fight the urge not to come right there and then as Ray takes him in his large hand, starting to jack him. Mikey closes his eyes and tries to focus on the feel of somebody else's hand on him for the first time and as Ray jacks him slow enough to brush his thumb over the head Mikey's eyes snap open, not able to even comprehend how good it feels.

When Mikey does open his eyes though he sees Ray staring at him with a smile on his face. Ray then leans forward to press his lips to Mikey's, kissing him quickly before taking his hand from his dick and dropping to his knees. Mikey is about to ask what he's doing but as he feels Rays hot mouth close around the head of his dick he doesn't think he'll even be able to think up a sentence, let alone speak it out load.

The feel of somebody's mouth around him has Mikey gasping. He throws his head back against the door because he just moved his head forward to look at Ray and that was a big mistake because if he watches himself disappear in to Ray's mouth for another second he will come embarrassingly fast. This is why he decides to rest his head against the door, reaching out to hold the side of the bunk bed that is nearest where he's standing. He's thankful for the support because his knees feel like they are about to buckle any second now as Ray takes him whole, using his mouth to take him in all the way and sucks hard, using the flat of his tongue to rub against the underside of Mikey's dick.

When Mikey knows he's about to come he lets his head drop forward again and watches Ray as he works, letting himself fall in to the spiral of an orgasm as it hits him, stomach clenching as he comes in to Ray's mouth, knuckles white as he grips the metal of the bunk bed hard.

Ray lets Mikey fall from his mouth a few seconds later when he's sure Mikey has finished and he grins as he pulls himself up to his feet again. Mikey is pressed against the door, clothes still around his knees and looks completely relaxed and undone as Ray leans in to kiss him.

"You look so good." Ray comments between small kisses and Mikey takes a breath to laugh a little.

It takes a few more moments for Mikey to regain his breath but when he does he leans forward to kiss Ray, taking the moment to back Ray in to the corner. He comes away from the door and holds Ray against the wall before reaching for his braces. He pulls them over his shoulders and Ray lifts his arms to help him, and once they are off he tugs at Ray's dirty shirt and pulls it out from his slacks. Now he can get to Ray's pants he unbuttons them quickly and pushes them down, along with his cotton underwear.

When he finally sees Ray's dick Mikey takes a deep breath and reaches out his hand, taking him in his palm and squeezes. Ray hisses and Mikey takes that as a sign to keep going, gripping his dick like he does his own and starts to move, small up and down motions at first because this is new and it's not himself hard and flushed in his hand but somebody else. It's different and it's new but Mikey feels a sudden rush of pride as he hears Ray starting to really moan, opening his mouth and letting the most amazing noises fall from his throat and Mikey can't believe that it's him making Ray feel like this.

He watches his hand for a while, watching the way Ray's dick moves and pulses but mostly just taking it all in. He's never even seen another man naked before, and to have Ray like this in front of him is the most surreal feeling in the world but as Ray starts to buck his hips forward, craving more Mikey thinks he can definitely get used to this.

It doesn't take much more before Ray is coming across Mikey's hand, white jets of come coating his knuckles as Ray throws his head back and groans, letting himself come undone in front of Mikey.

When he's come down Mikey lets go of him to wipe his hands across the front of Ray's dirty work shirt and he grins, suddenly proud of himself that he's just had his first sexual experience and probably the most amazing he could have had because Ray is grinning right back at him when he wipes his hand and pulls him in for a kiss, letting their bodies press together as their tongues slide together.

Ray navigates them back to his bunk and motions for Mikey to climb in first. He does, scooting over so that his back is pressing against the wall and he pats the space next to him for Ray to join him. Ray laughs and ducks his head, falling on to the uncomfortable bed and quickly turns on to his side so that he can move closer to Mikey. When he gets there he gives Mikey a goofy grin before leaning forward to peck at his lips. Mikey hums at the feeling of Ray kissing him and licks his lips right after, trying to see if he can taste him still. His lips are still a little rounder than usual and red and Mikey blushes for a moment when he realises why they look as they do.

"What?" Ray asks nervously and Mikey blushes a shade darker now.

"Nothing..." Mikey insists but Ray furrows his eyebrows and looks at him right in the eyes. "Your lips..." Mikey gestures with his hand. "They look a little red," he finishes and with that Mikey's sure he turns a darker shade of red.

Ray looks at him for a moment before licking his lip and starts to smirk. "Ohh, yeah..." he agrees as he fingers his own lips for a moment before moving his arm down to snake around Mikey's middle, pulling him closer in one quick and fluid motion.

They lay there for what seems like forever. Mikey feels strangely at ease in bed with another man and with Ray's arm draped across his middle, stroking the skin on his back gently as they talk about life. Mikey goes first, explaining who he is, who his family are and what his childhood was like and Ray listens intently, almost like he doesn't want to miss a word because he really cares and Mikey stops a few times during his explanation to just stare at Ray before he leans in quickly to peck at his lips or cheek, whichever he feels the most confident about at that given moment.

Ray's story is different and reminds Mikey of Frank's background a lot. A broken family, a broken home and no money often leads to a life of crime or living on the streets, or both usually but Mikey is glad that Ray and Frank seem to have a good head on their shoulders, and although it seems they have both been involved in the wrong types of work and crowds of people, they are good people and Mikey is glad for his non-judgmental trait that he inherited from his father and brother.

When Ray talks about his past and his family there is something so exciting about it for Mikey, and it seems exactly the same like he doesn't want to miss a word, wants to know and try to imagine all of the experiences Ray has had, good and bad and Ray's not used to this, having somebody of status want to know his past and hardships, somebody that wants to listen to him and shyly run a hand up and down his arm as he talks like Mikey is doing.

"I really admire you." Mikey cuts Ray off all of a sudden as he is telling the tale of when he and Frank got caught up in an illegal trade of meat because they were hungry and had nowhere to sleep for the night. It hadn't turned out well of course, had ended in disaster with them both running as fast as their legs could carry away from the police that had finally caught on to the illegal basement business and had burst in one afternoon. Ray laughs as he remembers him dropping the meat cleaver and running, it narrowing missing his own feet at he began to run, Frank following behind him. It's not exactly a tale that he is proud of, but Mikey seems interested in him still with the steady up and down stroking motions of his fingers against Ray's arm.

"You really shouldn't..." Ray admits and shakes his head against the bed.

Mikey shakes his head too, trying to get his point across. "No, you don't understand. My childhood was full of building wooden train set after wooden train set, the majority of my adolescence spend with my nose pressed in books..." Mikey rolls his eyes and Ray tuts but he ignores him and continues. "You have real character, you have a story and that's the bravest thing to have done, to have lived and to be able to tell a story." Mikey insists and Ray has to laugh a little because he really is the most adorable person he's ever come across.

He leans forward to kiss Mikey again and this time the kiss is deeper as Ray pushes his tongue out to probe at Mikey's lips, sliding it against his tongue as he opens up. It's warm and comforting and new but feels secure and Ray is really very sure that he could get used to feeling this secure and comfortable. It scares him to the moon and back, the fact that he's only just met Mikey and he has all of these feelings for him, these real feelings and it doesn't even feel like he can help himself, but he knows it's a good type of scared and that is what is allowing him to be so open, to kiss Mikey with all that he has to give.

When they pull away Mikey moves his arm up to search through his pocket to find his pocket watch. He stares at the time and groans. "It's nearly time for me to leave for dinner..." he tells Ray before putting his watch back in to his pocket. His clothes are still open and in the wrong places and he's sure he's going to have to fix that before he returns to his cabin to see his brother and Frank.

"You could come up and bathe again after dinner?" Mikey offers and Ray grins because of course he wants to.

"That sounds amazing." Ray nods and pecks at Mikey's lips. "Y'know, I have an early shift tomorrow. I could swap it for a night, if you wanted to spend the night with me, or if I was able to stay with you..." Ray starts to babble and Mikey lays there watching for a moment. "I mean, I'm not just inviting myself to stay in a first class cabin, I just, shit..." Ray lets out a sigh and stares at Mikey, silently asking for help. That help comes in the form of Mikey's lips against his, soothing and calm.

"I would love nothing more than for you to stay with me, please." Mikey smiles. "I do have to leave now, I'm afraid." He continues and Ray groans, using the hand on Mikey's back to squeeze the flesh before starting to move from his bunk to let Mikey out.

"Come up after dinner, alright?" Mikey feels the need to confirm again and Ray nods, smile toying at his lips.


When Mikey gets back up to the cabin it feels like a repeat of the morning. Gerard is sat on the living room couch looking worried and Frank is sat there too, rolling his eyes as Mikey walks through the door.

"Mikey, where have you been?" Gerard asks quickly and Mikey furrows his eyebrows.

"What, why?" he asks, suddenly defensive.

"I've looked all around deck for you, I was worried." Gerard tries to defend himself but Mikey only shrugs.

"I was with Ray." Mikey tells him and Gerard's face falls, signalling to Mikey that Frank told his brother about the kiss, about them.

"Mikey, are you insane? Do you even know-"

"What I'm getting myself in to? Yes, of course I do." Mikey talks quickly, his voice growing more annoyed. "Did you know what you were getting yourself in to with Frank?"

Gerard sighs and rubs at his eyes. "Mikey, that was different, you know that."

Mikey shakes his head. "No, I don't. I like Ray, he likes me. So we are from different places, tell me what's different about our situations, Gerard?" Mikey demands and now he's really not in the mood to argue. He's sick and tired of being treated like a child, having Gerard the older brother who is allowed to do whatever he wants, choose his own career path and be with whoever he wants. Mikey's life is different though, and for once he wants to be able to make decisions about himself on his own.

"I'm only worried about you Mikey. I don't want you to get hurt." Gerard lowers his tone of voice now and Mikey knows this game, he knows that Gerard is backing down and letting Mikey take the stand.

Mikey's face softens a little. "I know, and I'm worried too. But for the first time in my life Gee, I know I want something. I know I want this for myself." Mikey sighs and looks at Gerard with a pout on his lips, playful but still serious. "Let me have this, please?" he asks with pleading eyes.

"Just, please be careful?" Gerard asks and Mikey smiles.

"I will be, I'm just happy, Gerard, for the first time in a long while." Mikey admits and Gerard nods because he does know exactly how his younger brother is feeling, and when love turns out right, it's the most amazing feeling in the world.

Dinner isn't so bad after their disagreement and Gerard makes sure to make conversation with his brother a little more this time, asking him his opinions on more things and taking more of an interest on what his younger sibling has to say.

Mikey does feel happier for this dinner meal and it shows because Frank winks at him half way through a bite of lamb and Mikey chews a little harder, trying not to think of what he and Ray did in the cabin earlier, trying his best not to let happiness radiate from his cheeks.

Once they arrive back at the cabin after dinner it isn't long until there is a knock at the cabin door. Mikey stands up quickly from where he's sitting on the couch reading and drops his book, heading over to the door to open it. He knows who is on the other side but it doesn't stop a smile stretching across his face once he sees Ray.

As Mikey leads Ray further in to the cabin Gerard looks up from his book he is reading, giving Ray a stern smile. It's awkward and Ray is sure he wants to turn around and run from the suite but Frank winks and smiles at him and Mikey takes his hand, boldly dragging him towards his room. Once they are there Mikey kisses him before pushing him towards the bathroom.

Once Ray is naked and in the bathtub he calls Mikey in from where he is lay on the bed trying to concentrate on his book. Mikey gets up from the bed and opens the bathroom door then walks slowly in to the bathroom. He sees Ray lay in the bath, naked of course but the sight is still amazing.

"Are you okay, did you forget something?" Mikey asks and Ray shakes his head, looking at him sheepishly.

"No, I just wanted your company." Ray smiles and holds out his wet hand. Mikey smiles and perches himself down on the edge of the bath and holds Ray's hand. It's uncomfortable and he feels a little awkward seeing Ray so vulnerable and naked so soon, but he likes the fact that Ray feels comfortable enough to have Mikey there.

He stays with him until it's time for Ray to get out of the bath tub. Mikey gives him a smile and walks back in to his room to grab a spare bath robe from the back of the door. It's fluffy and white and has the White Star Line logo on the front. When he gets back to the bathroom Ray has already climbed out of the tub and wrapped a small towel around his middle. He takes the robe from Mikey and leans in to kiss his lips quickly as he pulls it around himself, tying the cord around his middle.

It doesn't take long for Ray to dry and as he searches around his pile of dirty clothes for his underwear Mikey holds out a pair of silk black boxers. Ray gives him a confused look but Mikey shakes them in front of him again and silently insists that he takes them.

"They aren't going to fit me, besides you can't ruin them on me." Ray laughs and tries to shy away from the fact that he really doesn't want to break the seams in a very expensive pair of underwear but Mikey shakes his head with narrow eyes.

"They are far too big on me, and besides..." he unfolds them in his hand and holds them up towards Ray. "I think you're going to look good in them." Mikey smirks and then grins when Ray snatches them from his hands and pulls them on.


April 14th1912 –


The next morning Mikey wakes up feeling a sense of security as he turns around and his face is pressed against Ray's chest. It's warm and comfortable and gets the feeling that he never wants this to end. He blinks his eyes open a few times and brings a hand up to rub at them, the night of good sleep behind him suddenly getting the better of his eyes. He shifts a little closer to Ray, feeling his legs against his own. This feeling, waking up next to somebody is new and adventurous and Mikey could certainly make a habit of doing so because it feels amazing, and he's the warmest he's probably ever been in a bed before.

It's not long before Ray stirs and opens his eyes and Mikey feels slightly wrong for staring at him as he does so, Ray's eyes widening a little when he realises where he is, but soon pulls Mikey's body closer with his arm and kisses him blindly on the forehead.

"Good morning." Mikey hums as Ray kisses his head. "Did you sleep well?" he asks as he watches Ray yawn and stretch his long legs out.

"Mmm." Ray nods and pushes the side of his face in to the pillow. "This has got to be the most comfortable bed I've ever slept in..." Ray admits and lets his eyes slip closed again, relishing in the feel of having Mikey in his arms and a warm and comfortable bed to wake up in.

"I think I heard Gerard and Frank leave the cabin already." Mikey tells Ray and he nods against the pillow.

"What time is it, did we over sleep?" Ray asks and Mikey hums before moving backwards out of Ray's embrace. He keeps a firm arm around Mikey though, pulling him back when he has his pocket watch in his hand which was resting on the dresser next to the bed.

"It's only 9 o' clock, they will have gone to breakfast." Mikey calculates the timings of breakfast in his head and works out that the quiet noises he heard as he was stirring from sleep was in fact his brother and Frank leaving the cabin, which means they have the cabin to themselves.

He knows that he should probably check though, so he pushes Ray's arm from around his middle and rolls off of the bed, feet pressing on to the plush carpet. He walks across the room and opens his bedroom door, looking around quickly before he runs across the living room. He is nearly naked still, wearing only his underwear. He checks the decking quickly and knocks on his brother's bedroom door, but with no answer he concludes they have left for the morning. He runs his way across the living room and back to his bedroom where he closes the door and grins at Ray who is sprawled out in his bed, looking completely gorgeous.

"So..." Mikey begins and Ray eyes him suspiciously, because he has a tone attached to his voice and Ray's not so sure he likes it or not. "We have the cabin to ourselves, and you seem to be awfully naked in my bed..." Mikey observes and Ray laughs a little.

"Is that so?" Ray asks with a smirk on his face as he moves his head forward a little, now resting on Mikey's pillow.

Mikey nods but before he climbs back in to bed he notices something at the edge of his bedside table, a glass jar with a note next to it. Mikey looks at it for a moment before leaning forward and picking it up along with the note. It's a jar of Vaseline and the note is scratched out in what he recognises as Frank's handwriting.

We'll be back after lunch... Frankie x

Mikey's eyebrows quirk as he rereads the sentence over a few times before setting it back down and staring down at the Vaseline. It takes him a few moments of looking at it to realise that it's already half used and it only takes another moment for it to click in to place. Oh. Oh. He stares at it for another few moments before looking back up at Ray who is looking at him with an intense gaze, eyes alternating between looking at Mikey's face and the jar. Mikey's not stupid, really he isn't but he's new to this, extremely new and his heart is thudding in his ears, not really knowing exactly where he should take it from here. He knows about sex, about men having sex because his brother and Frank aren't exactly subtle about their affairs, at least not with him and suddenly he feels just a little grateful that he has a vague idea of what he might be soon to take part in.

He looks at Ray though, who is smiling up at him and suddenly he feels a little more relaxed. He licks his lips and settles the jar on the table, closer to the bed this time before climbing back in and slotting himself back in to Ray's arms and as he does Ray leans forward and presses his lips in to his, instantly pushing his tongue out which Mikey accommodates for as he opens his mouth. He sighs in to the kiss, enjoying the feel of Ray on him, hot and wet tongue sliding against his own as he feels an arm pull him in by the middle. Mikey groans and as he does Ray breaks the kiss, panting and staring at him right in the eyes as he slips a thigh between Mikey's, entangling their legs together.

As they kiss again it starts to deepen, Mikey's tongue finding its way in to Rays mouth this time, his heart thudding against his ribcage as he licks along Ray's teeth quickly, blood pulsing and head thumping. It's intoxicating, nothing even a night of brandy could invent and Mikey can't seem to get enough as he pushes himself against Ray's hips and thigh, slowly grinding his body in to the other.

When Ray pushes back against Mikey's pointy body he breaks the kiss to groan, feeling his erection pressing against the silk boxers and in to Mikey's leg. Mikey's eyes bug wide, feeling his own dick hard and warm against Ray's hip. As Ray moves back a little he moves a hand from Mikey's hip to the front of his stomach where he pushes at the small piece of flesh before letting his long fingers dip in to the silk of Mikey's underwear, lower until he feels his pubic hair brushing against his skin, lower until he can take a hold of Mikey's dick in his hand and squeeze.

Mikey gasps, pushing the side of his face in to the pillow because Jesus, this is only the second time he's had another hand on his dick and it seems in the last day he's forgotten just how amazing that feeling is. He stops Ray mid jerk though, and uses a hand to tug at his underwear. Ray understands quickly and pulls his hand out to help Mikey out of them. Once they are off Ray sets to work again, taking Mikey's erection in his hand again and starts to jerk him slowly, setting a rhythm that works well with the sweat and precome. It's not too quick because Ray knows that Mikey isn't going to be able to control himself as much as he knows he would like, but it's enough to get him groaning, hips starting to snap softly to the rhythm that Ray has set in place, a rhythm that Mikey is more than happy to follow.

After a few more moments of moving his hand along Mikey's length and watching him moan, Ray takes his hand from where it is curled around the other mans' dick and moves it lower, cupping his balls. He rolls them gently in his hand, watching Mikey's face for any change and as he squeezes a little, warm hand against his skin Mikey groans, hips snapping downwards this time, grinding himself in to Ray's hand. Ray grins and moves his hand a little more, fondling and squeezing a little more before he lets his fingers slip a little lower, pressing against his perineum. Ray presses two fingers against the flat of skin, gently starting to move them around in a circular motion, applying a little pressure. Mikey moans again, this time a little lower as he lets his body relax in to the touch because this is something he's never done himself before.

It feels intense but Mikey feels like his is melting in to the bed, skin hot and clammy against the sheets as Ray looks at him with a small smile, fingers still massaging that spot just underneath his balls. Mikey feels amazing, his limbs loose and heavy, pulse still thumping in his ears but slower this time, much slower as Ray touches him. He feels much more relaxed, and as Ray moves those two fingers a little lower Mikey gasps, feeling the fingers brushing against his ass cheeks and down his crack.

"Is this too much?" Ray asks as he moves his fingers up and down, stroking the crack of Mikey's ass gently. Mikey shakes his head against the pillow and shivers when Ray moves his fingers again. "I could try a finger inside of you...it feels good." Ray offers and Mikey's eyes bug again because as much as he knew what could be coming, he still feels unravelled and exposed but in the most amazing way he's ever felt before.

"I trust you, you'll use the Vaseline?" Mikey asks and Ray nods, smile attached to his lips as he leans down to press it to Mikey's. It works because as he pulls back Mikey smiles too, teeth showing before he bites at his lip.

Ray moves his hand from where he was on Mikey's ass to reach over and take the jar of Vaseline from the table. He unscrews the lid and dips a finger in, coating a few fingers well in the jelly before setting it back on the side. Mikey breaths deep, taking slow but precise breaths that he knows he needs to maintain for this to go well. Ray settles himself back in position, them both lay on their sides as Ray moves his hand back down between Mikey's legs, brushing against his balls again, that smooth spot between that seems to have relaxed him so much and finally to the crack of his ass again. Ray delves a finger in, finding his hole and presses a coated finger gently to the opening. He pushes a little, finger met with resistance as he circles around, pushing the tip in slow.

He watches Mikey's face for any signs of discomfort and kisses at his jaw and cheek as he pushes in further, the outer ring reaching his first knuckle. Mikey has his eyes closed now, still practicing his slow and long breaths as Ray pushes in a little more, slowly until one finger is completely consumed.

"How does that feel?" Ray asks and Mikey lets out an airy laugh. Ray grins and nods because he knows exactly how it feels, strange and new but there is just something about it that he knows he is going to love sooner or later.

"Good. Strange." Mikey nods and Ray leans in to kiss his lips. As he kisses him he slowly moves his finger out a little, pushing back in at the same speed and as he does he feels Mikey gasp against his mouth. He repeats his actions, pulling and pushing and soon he starts to feel Mikey push down on his finger. When he pulls out the next time he prods two fingers at the opening this time and Mikey nods quickly, not needing much of a thought to know that this is going to feel good, soon.

Ray pushes the two fingers inside and it's certainly more but Mikey moans as he pushes in further, the fingers stretching him a little more this time. Leaning forward to kiss Mikey again Ray presses their lips together quickly before moving down the bed, careful to keep his fingers still as he does so. Once he's where he wants to be he uses his free hand to take the base of Mikey's dick in his hand, holding it upright so he can sink his mouth over the shaft.

"Oh, yeah, yeah..." Mikey babbles as Ray takes him down as far as he can and sucks, warm and wet and it feels incredible as Ray pushes his fingers further inside of his ass. Mikey's pushing his hips down too, bowing down on to the digits as he starts to feel more confident. Using his thumb that is outside of Mikey's body he presses against his perineum again, fingers curling inside of him and thumb pressing firm against the sensitive skin. Mikey is losing his mind now, what with the fingers inside of him, on him and mouth swallowing him whole he's not got much time to warn Ray that he's really going to let go.

"Ray, I'm..." he gasps, hips snapping forward and he's not sure whether he wants them to snap up or down, whether he wants his dick inside of Ray's mouth or more pressure inside of him. "I'm going to...Ray..." he pants and as Ray's name falls from his mouth he comes, body stilling as he spills in to Ray's mouth. He freezes his hips and Ray stills his movements, letting Mikey shake and unload before he feels him flatten against the bed.

Ray slowly pulls his fingers out, careful not to do so too quickly and pulls his mouth from Mikey too, quickly moving back to the head of the bed where Ray pulls Mikey in to his arms, holding him close and leans in to kiss him slowly. He feels Mikey sigh in to the kiss and he smiles against his lips.

When they break apart Mikey looks shy again. "What is it?" he asks as he looks at Ray smiling at him.

"Nothing, that was just..." Ray stops to think and Mikey's heart stops for a moment, concerned about what he is going to say. "It was amazing." Ray smiles and Mikey beams back at him, grinning as he huddles himself closer to Ray's body. When he moves a hand down to Ray's front he realises he still has his underwear on, a wet patch at the front and the outline of Ray's hard dick pressing against the smooth fabric. Mikey moves his hand to pull at the elastic, prompting Ray to lift his hips so that he can move the underwear for him. When he does Ray gasps, the feel of the material pressing against his erection as Mikey pulls them off. When they are gone and his dick is finally unconstrained Mikey watches as Ray quickly takes himself in his hand.

Mikey can't take his eyes from where Ray is touching himself, hand tightly fisted around himself as he starts up a quick pace, pushing his hips up in to the motion. After a few moments of watching though, Mikey needs to touch.

He move his hand down to where Ray has his own wrapped around his dick and covers it with his own hand, curling his fingers around Ray's and they move their hands together. Mikey soon grows impatient though, because he wants Ray's dick to himself now. He pushes Ray's hand away and moves his own in place.

"Yeah. Mmm..." Ray hums as Mikey holds him in his hand for a moment, hard and warm against his palm before he starts to jerk him, quicker than the first time they did this the day before in Ray's cabin. He seems to have picked it up well, granted all he's doing is transferring the many years of touching himself across to touching another person and with the noises that Ray is making yet again, it seems to be doing the trick.

Ray doesn't last long, not with having spent so much time working on Mikey, dick pressed against the silk boxers. He's needed to come for a while now so when he finally spills over Mikey's knuckles, hips snapping up from the bed and a loud groan pushing from his throat it's a relief, his body shaking as he orgasms.

Mikey wipes his hand on the sheets and inwardly scowls at himself because he knows some poor maid will have to change his sheets, but he's soon distracted by Ray pulling him in for a bruising kiss. When they pull back both men are smiling.

"That was amazing..." Mikey mumbles and Ray tightens his arms around Mikey's middle, pulling him close and slipping a leg between Mikey's again.

"It really was." Ray agrees as he strokes the skin on Mikey's hip, enjoying the feeling of being completely naked against one another. It's something that Mikey is new to experience and if the warm, stirring feeling in the bottom of his stomach is anything to go by, he would love to be spending a lot more time in this position, naked and content with Ray right next to him.

"I'd like to try that again..." Mikey comments and Ray eyes him carefully. "The fingers, I'd like to do that again." he nods to himself and Ray smiles.

"You enjoyed it?"

"God, yes." Mikey laughs and blushes a little, remembering the strange sensation at first until it subsided and all he felt was pleasure, strong and intense.

Ray kisses Mikey's lips again quickly. "I'm glad. There's so much more we could try too, when you're ready." Ray suggests and he's sure it comes out as more of a question, but Mikey nods and smiles.

"Yeah, I'd really like that."

They eventually leave the bed just before lunch, moving to the bathroom together to wash up and get dressed. Ray feels awkward putting his work clothes back on but he feels even more awkward when Mikey offers him a crisp white shirt that looks far too small for him. Mikey insists it will fit him and that it's a spare, but Ray sticks with his semi-clean shirt and pants. He does borrow another pair of silk boxers from Mikey though, the previous pair stained with this morning's activities.

When they are dressed they make their way in to the living room, just in time for a knock at the door. It's Harriet, pushing a large trolley of food and drinks.

"Gentlemen, would you like lunch on the decking or in the main hall?" she asks with a polite smile on her face as he looks into and across the room at Ray. She knows he shouldn't be there, of course she does but she doesn't falter, smiling at Mikey as she asks.

Mikey smiles back and nods. "Food would be great, thank you."

She nods and Mikey steps aside to let her through with the trolley as she wheels it through the living room and out on to their private decking. She sets the lunch table with a variety of different foods and drinks before wheeling the trolley back out, mentioning that she will be back round to collect the dinnerware later on.

They eat quietly on the decking, next to each other as they fill their mouths with delicious pieces of chicken and vegetables, Ray groaning at the taste.

"This is nothing like they give you down in crew." he states as he shovels another mouthful and as he watches Mikey do the same, he's glad he's found somebody that matches his appetite.

Mikey laughs and reaches out a hand to squeeze Ray's thigh. "They should feed you well, you need all the energy and brain food you can find to power this ship."

Ray rolls his eyes because he's still not accepting the compliments Mikey gives him for working in the boiler rooms. Mikey still thinks it's fascinating, but Ray only sees it as monotamous.

Once they finish eating their lunch Mikey reaches for the plate with a large piece of sponge cake on.

"Ready for desert?" Mikey asks and Ray grins.

"You bet."


Just after lunch Frank and Gerard arrive back at the cabin and with a knowing smile Frank winks at Mikey who tries not to blush and avert his eyes to the floor like a culprit. Frank only grins though and shoulder bumps Mikey.

"You want to play some card games with us?" Gerard asks Mikey and Ray as they sit down on the couch.

"Yeah, sure." Ray smiles and Mikey nods along.

They spend the rest of the afternoon playing cards with a brandy and as dinner comes around Frank and Gerard decide that they would rather eat on the decking.

"Do you and Ray want to join us on the decking for dinner?" Gerard asks his brother with a kind smile.

"Yeah, that would be great." Mikey nods and looks across to Ray who is nodding also.

They send Frank to order dinner to their room and it doesn't take too long before Harriet is at the door again, an even larger trolley of food and drink that she pushes in to the suite and out on to the decking as she collects the plates from lunch.

It's a lovely meal and Gerard makes more of an effort this time to speak to Ray, getting to know him and telling him about their lives. He seems to have relaxed a little and Mikey notices, and whether it's due to Frank or Gerard coming to his senses, he's not sure but he does know that having Gerard talk to Ray in a friendly manor, it's a good sign of things to come.

Mikey leads Ray back to his room after they finish up their dinner and pulls him to the bed, pushing him down on to the mattress and joins him moments later, cuddling in to his front.

"I think we should lay here until you have to leave me..." Mikey suggests, pout playing across his lips and wide, hurt eyes.

Ray laughs and leans in to kiss the pout from Mikey's face. "It's my job, I have to go."

"I know, how else would the ship move?" Mikey asks and Ray only rolls his eyes before leaning in to kiss his lips again, this time for longer.

It's getting late and Ray is painfully aware that he is going to have to move soon for his shift. He has Mikey laying across his chest, reading his book aloud in his room and he really can't remember the last time he felt so content. He knows he has to turn up for his shift, but if he could stay here with Mikey and hold him close to his chest for the rest of the night, he would do so in a heartbeat. Ray looks at the clock and notices that he still has around twenty minutes before he has to be down in the boiler room, and he's already dressed so deems that more than enough time say goodbye to Mikey and run below decks.

Just as Ray is about to tell Mikey that he needs to leave soon there is a large shudder. The glass of the chandelier in the living room can be heard shaking from his room and the glass of water on the bed side table is shaking violently, a low rumble coming from below decks.

"What was that?" Mikey asks as he closes his book and sets it down on the bed. Ray looks around with a concerned face and shrugs.

"I have no idea, it didn't sound good." Ray points out and Mikey gives him a concerned look. "I start my shift in twenty minutes, I'll go early and make sure everything is alright."

Mikey pouts but nods because he knows Ray still needs to work. "You'll come back in the morning for a bath right?" Mikey asks and Ray grins before kissing him on the lips.

"Of course." he kisses Mikey's lips again before hauling himself from the bed. "I'll see you in the morning, alright?" he leans down to kiss at Mikey's lips a few more times and Mikey spreads out on the bed, picking his book back up and opening the page.

"See you in the morning!" Mikey calls out as Ray walks from his room and in to the living room to exit through the main door.

Mikey lays back and relaxes, continuing to read his book for a while before Frank and Gerard come bursting in to Mikey's room. He looks confused as they stare at each other.

"What's wrong?" Mikey asks as he closes his book for the second time and sets it back down on the bed. One day he is going to finish this book, he's just not sure when.

"We were out on the decking, did you feel the shudder?" Gerard asks and Mikey's eyes grow wider.

"Yeah I did, why?" Mikey asks suddenly feeling panicked.

Gerard takes a deep breath. "We just hit an iceberg, it looked bad from where we were sitting."

Mikey's eyes grow even wider now, sitting up on the bed to stare at his brother and Frank.

"What do we do?" Mikey asks with a shocked expression across his face.

"We need to check, see if the ship is alright." Frank states. "Ray might know, right?"

Mikey's breath hitches a little because Ray, he's down in the boiler rooms and if they have hit a burg and the ship is going down, the boiler rooms will be the first to go.

"He's just gone down to start his shift, the boiler rooms..." Mikey starts to panic but Gerard holds his hand out to stop him.

"No, we need to be calm and wait here." Gerard nods as if he's agreeing with himself and Frank nods too.

"He's right, wait here for any news or assistance."

Mikey stares at them but he knows they are right, there is nothing they can do but wait.

When Ray gets down to the boiler rooms the iron shutters are closed. He has this dreadful feeling in his chest that something is wrong, and when he sees men running from room four he really starts to panic. He sees a senior officer running too and manages to stop him.

"Hey, what's going on?" Ray asks quickly and the man stops with a horrified look on his face.

"The boiler rooms are flooded, we've hit an iceberg," he speaks quickly. "They've shut the compartments off, men are stuck." he tells Ray and his stomach drops.

"But we can stay afloat with those compartments breached, can't we?"

The man shakes his head. "There's too many flooded, we've calculated six. The water, it came so quick."

"Jesus, where are you heading?" he asks and even though his brain is focused on the ship hitting something and the men trapped in the boiler rooms, he can't help but think of Mikey who's still in his first class suite, unsuspecting.

"Top deck, lifeboats are there but there aren't many! Any crew left have been told to help out on deck and if you can sail, you'll be given the lifeboat to man." The man tells him and Ray nods before the man continues running down the corridor and towards the stairs.

Ray stands there for a few moments before realising that he has to move and do something quick. Without a second thought he makes his way back up to the first class deck quickly, running past people in corridors to make sure he can get there before they start to put some kind of system in to place. He gets to the cabin he wants quickly and opens the door without even knocking where he's met with Frank and Gerard who are pacing around the living room.

Frank breathes a sigh of relief when he sees Ray and Gerard just stares, knowing something is wrong.

"What's happened?" Frank asks and as soon as Mikey hears Ray's voice he comes running in to the room too, standing in front of Ray.

"We've hit a berg, the boiler rooms are flooded." Ray tells them honestly and all three of them stare at him in shock.

"We've hit?" Gerard repeats and Ray nods because even though they saw the ice on the decking, it's a shock when it's confirmed.

"What's going to happen?" Mikey asks and Ray turns to him and looks him right in the eyes.

"We need to get up on deck as quick as we can, I've been told to help load lifeboats and will probably have to man one too." he tells them and can't help but see the look in Mikey's eyes when he sees that Ray is going to be in the thick of it all.

"So we need to be on deck then." Gerard concludes and Ray nods.

"Get your lifejackets." Ray suggests and Mikey quickly turns to run in to his room. As Frank follows suit and runs in to his and Gerard's room to get theirs, Gerard pulls Ray to the side.

"You are manning a boat, right?"

"I think so, at least helping load."

"I need you to promise me that you will get Mikey on that boat." Gerard insists. "I need my brother on a lifeboat, Ray, no matter what it takes."

Ray rubs at his face with his hand and agrees. "I'll do my best."

"Good man, Ray." Gerard says and squeezes Ray's arm before Mikey and Frank come running back in to the living room with armfuls of life jackets for each of them.

Once they have their lifejackets on they make their way up to deck. They follow Ray to one of the lifeboats and stand and wait as Ray is given instructions. Once he knows what he will be doing he walks back over to them, noticing that the decks are fairly clear because none of the first class passengers who are boarded into lifeboats first want to catch a chill or leave their rooms unattended.

"I'm taking this boat, I have to load and then I'm lowered down in it." Ray tells them and Mikey's face falls. "The first person I need to get in to the boat is you, Mikey." Ray points at Mikey and he looks confused.

"Why just me?" Mikey asks as he shakes his head because there is no way he is going to leave his brother or Frank.

Gerard takes this moment to interrupt. "You're first to get in to the boat Mikey, you're the youngest." Gerard reassures him but Mikey is having none of it.

"Why can't you board too?" Mikey asks, his voice growing panicked and Gerard moves forward to grip his younger brother's shoulder.

"Me and Frank will get another boat, there are many for first class," he tries to tell his brother and he seems to believe him. Gerard feels like the worst human on the planet when he tells his brother to save himself, not even knowing if there will be a boat that he and Frank will be able to board but he would rather know his brother is safe than himself, and as long as he has Frank with him he will be fine.

"We need to hurry, I don't know how long we have." Ray tells him, not wanting to cut their goodbye short but knowing that if he is going to get Mikey in to the boat before anybody else, he needs to move fast.

Gerard steps forward and pulls his brother in by the arm, hugging him tight against his chest. "Please, get in to the boat Mikes. For me," he whispers against the side of Mikey's face.

"I don't want to leave you," Mikey whispers back and Gerard hugs him tighter.

"I know, but we will be alright." Gerard promises, not believing it himself as he kisses the side of Mikey's head. "Go on, get in the boat."

Mikey nods and steps forward to hug Frank. "See you soon, right?" Frank smiles and Mikey nods.

"Yeah, soon." Mikey agrees with vacant eyes as he looks at his brother and Frank once more before turning around to look at Ray who leads him over to the boat.

It's not long at all before the decks start to flood with ice cold water. Frank and Gerard have already tried the lifeboat in which Ray told them might be an option, but it was already full with women and children and there was not a chance that either of them would ever deny a woman or child a seat to safety. They try the other side of the deck, finding a few lifeboats that were still filling but none of them would take men. They both know that their chances are slim, but Gerard knows that his younger brother is safe and that as long as he is with Frank, everything will be alright.

"I think there might be one other lifeboat down this end, I remember seeing it on the tour." Frank pants as they stop for a second, watching hundreds of passengers around them panic. Some of them are crying, most are panicking and trying to find safety but most know it's never going to come.

As the ship starts to creek Frank nods to Gerard and they start to run again, trying to find the lifeboat that Frank remembers seeing. They do find it, running through people and making sure that they have one another's hand at all times but it's full. It's about to be lowered and they stop again to breathe, to take in the fact that there is no other way out and they will be going down with the ship.

"What are we going to do?" Frank asks quietly but Gerard hears him over the creaking of the ship and the panic.

He moves closer to Frank and pulls him close. "As long as we have each other, we will be alright." he promises and kisses Frank's lips quickly.

"The ship is sinking quick, we've not got long." Frank observes as he sees water spilling over from the second deck and on to the main one, half of the ship is already in the water and it feels as its happened all at once.

"We need to make it back up to that end, it's higher in the water than this end and it will buy us more time." Gerard instructs and Frank nods before taking Gerard's hand again to pull him along.

They end up on the top of the ship, and as the top deck fills with water the ship starts to turn on its front, back end hanging in the air. Frank and Gerard try anything to hold on to and hold on to one another as the ship slowly starts to break in to two.

When they hit the water the air is knocked out of them. Their lifejackets pull them up from the suction around the ship and Frank clings to Gerard with all that he has, trying hard to kick his legs as much as he can to pull them both away from where the suction ring is.

"Need-n-need to swim." Frank gasps out because that's all he can do, gasp and try to force words from his lungs but he's sure he's never felt this cold before, not even when he was homeless.

Gerard doesn't reply, only kicks his legs the best he can too and tries to swim in the same direction as Frank. Thankfully they swim for a minute and notice an upturned collapsible lifeboat that already has men huddled on it. Frank starts to kick his legs even harder now, trying his best to get them to the boat and try to get them out of the water. When they reach the boat though, there is only room for one. The boat is full of men shivering, blowing on their whistles to try and attract the boats floating nearby but it doesn't look as if anything is going to happen, nobody is going to come and save them.

"Get o-on the boat, G-ger-ard." Frank tries to speak but his teeth are chattering too much, his mouth telling him that the water he is swimming in is far too cold for him, but there is nothing that he can do about it right now.

Gerard does his best to shake his head in the freezing water. "No, you. Now," he insists before pushing Frank further towards the boat. Frank doesn't argue, only hauls himself from the water and on to the boat, room for him between an old man and a younger boy. Once Frank is sat on the upturned boat Gerard pulls himself towards him, holding on to his legs as he tries to keep himself moving a little, at least his legs.

It's not long until they really notice somebody dying. The old man to the right of Frank is frozen and unresponsive, and as a man next to him tries to wake him they quickly check his pulse, Frank turning away as they see it's no good before slowly pushing him from the boat and in to the sea. Gerard feels the sudden urge to be sick but he's pretty sure anything in his stomach is frozen by now. When the man is in the water and sinking under Frank quickly pulls Gerard on to the boat and out of the water before anybody else can get a chance.

"T-tha-ank y-you." Gerard's teeth chatter in his mouth and Frank smiles weakly, clinging on to his lover and kissing the top of his head, black mass of frozen hair cold against his lips.

Mikey's teeth are chattering too as he pulls the blanket closer around his skinny body, trying desperately to trap in any warmth but he's losing the battle, the harsh Atlantic air chilling him down to the core. They have stopped rowing now that they’re at a safe distance to avoid being sucked under by the boat, and as a crew member puts down the large torch and sits down, head in hand, Ray moves over to Mikey, sitting next to him. He quickly wraps an arm around his small body and pulls him close. Mikey’s thankful for any extra warmth that Ray may provide and pushes his nose against his neck, only finding cold skin. He closes his eyes and remembers just hours ago when he had his nose pressed against Ray's neck in his bed, lay together with their legs tangled. He tries to remember how warm and content he felt, but it's hard trying to remember something he is sure he is never going to feel again.

He wants to cry, wants to vomit until there is nothing left in his stomach as he watches the boat sinking but he knows that there is nothing there, no tears to cry or anything but bile in his stomach. First he watches in complete shock as the boat starts to drop, deck by deck as it starts to flood and sink lower in to the sea. It then turns to utter horror and helplessness as he watches the boat start to drop at one end, the bow of the ship sinking first leaving the stern starting to rise. Ray holds him close, tries to cover his face with his arms so that his nose is pressed right in to his neck but Mikey wants to see, he needs to watch as closing his eyes and hearing the screams in the distance is worse, not knowing if one of those is his brother or Frank, if they are already dead or if they are in a boat. This is the worst part of it all, not knowing and having to wait.

Mikey's stomach drops when the lights cut out on the ship. The lights were casting an eerie shadow on the ocean, illuminating the water and adding more detail to the scene but when the lights cut he hears the screams intensify.

"I'm here," Ray whispers in to Mikey's hair as he holds him close, running a hand up and down his arm that is covered in the blanket, trying desperately to sooth him in any way he can. He looks down at Mikey's face and his heart breaks, seeing the younger mans eyes wide with horror and despair, watching as the boat starts to crack in to two, the sound of metal bending and wood breaking loud enough for them to hear all the way back in the lifeboats. He holds Mikey closer as the bow starts to sink completely, leaving the stern to bob up and down for a few moments before the ocean slowly takes it whole, devouring what is left of the ship and leaving nothing but helpless people in its wake.

When the ship is finally gone, the screams grow louder. Ray squeezes Mikey again, knowing that he can't possibly pull him any closer in to his body than he already is doing but that doesn't stop him trying, doesn't stop him kissing the top of Mikey's head over and over again, ignoring the odd look at they get because really, the rest of the passengers in the lifeboat are far too concerned about what is going on around them to notice.

The worst part is the waiting. A few of the passengers on the boat try to argue that they need to row back as soon as the boat disappeared, but the crew insist that the suction is still far too strong and that if they went back now, they would either be sucked under along with the Titanic or their boat would be mobbed with desperate people trying to get to safety.

Ray feels sick having to wait, having to sit still but having Mikey in his arms helps. It's not until the water grows silent that the other crew member beckons Ray over to where he is at the head of the lifeboat, torch in hand.

"We need to start rowing back. It's safer now."

Ray nods with vacant eyes.

"We could use the boat just there, transfer a few from this boat to that one to make room?" The other man signals and Ray can only nod again, trying his best to take instruction.

It doesn't take long to arrange. They move the majority of people out of the boat, Mikey of course staying as he insists that he is going to help as they row back to find survivors, trying his best to block out the thoughts of finding his brother in the water.

As they start to row back Mikey keeps his head down low, avoiding looking at the bodies in the water. He watches Ray's face at first but decides against that too as he watches the horror in his eyes as they row past, trying to be as careful and respectful as possible as they realise that they are mostly too late.

It's when they rescue the first person that they see is alive that Mikey snaps to life, suddenly remembering that his brother and Frank could still be alive. He tries to help Ray haul the elderly lady from the water and in to the lifeboat but Ray tells him to sit down and keep warm and so he watches as Ray and the other crew member help the woman in to the boat and wrap her in a blanket that is from the large metal box at the top of the lifeboat, assuming that it's a box of survival supplies.

When the woman is wrapped in the blanket Ray takes a step back, mentally thanking himself that they decided to go back at all, much unlike the other lifeboats he can see floating in the distance. They are the only boat to return and he feels sick knowing that so many people could sit there, watching so many drown and not want to return to help.

They only row a few more minutes before Ray spots a familiar face in the water. It's Frank, huddled up with what looks like Gerard on the top of an overturned lifeboat. Frank spots the boat as it sails towards them.

Mikey stands up quickly, his blanket falling from his body as he rushes to the side of the boat.

"Gerard. Gee?" Mikey shouts.

"H-he's here." Frank tries to shout but his lungs seem to fail him.

"Frank, we're coming." Ray shouts out as they row as carefully as possible. It's only Frank and Gerard left on the overturned piece of wood and as the boat gets closer they are not in good shape. Gerard is pale and unresponsive, and Frank tells Ray to take him first.

When they pull Gerard on to the lifeboat Mikey stands up quickly to help. He watches as the other crew member pulls Frank in to the boat by his hands, hauling him over the side and as Frank catches his breath he crawls over to a seat and picks himself up from the floor, sitting down on the wooden bench.

Mikey's heart is thumping as fast as it can manage with the cold . As they get Gerard out of the water and in to the lifeboat Mikey pulls Gerard on to the floor and checks for his pulse, but there isn't one he can feel.

"Ray. Ray..." Mikey starts to repeat in a panicked voice as he takes his brother's wrist in his other hand, trying his best to get his fingers to work to try and feel something, anything thrumming away under his touch.

Ray takes Gerard's wrist in his own hand and holds, staring out in to the black night as he does so, hoping he's going to feel something, anything under his fingers. He does, only faint and just about recognisable but it's there, and he laughs, trying to gulp at the air in relief.

"He's here, he's alive." Ray nods and Mikey chokes back tears, shaking as he grabs a blanket from the floor, wrapping his brother in it tightly before laying down on the floor with him, holding him as close as he can.

Ray quickly takes another blanket from the box at the top of the lifeboat and moves to wraps it around Frank and holds him close for a moment, moving his hands up and down in an attempt to try and warm him.

"Th-at was c-close." Frank tries to laugh, the cold air not allowing his lungs the capacity as he coughs and Ray laughs a little, fighting back the lump in his throat.

"You're okay Frankie. Gerard's okay." Ray reassures as he holds the blanket around Frank's body, trying to warm him up.

Mikey's stroking his brother's hair now, talking to him quietly as he tries his best to keep Gerard as warm as he can. He looks awful, pale and hair full of ice.

"Here, give him some of this." A man hands Mikey a hipflask to which he assumes is full of brandy. Mikey leans up and takes the metal container, laying back down and holds it to Gerard's lips. He lets the liquid dribble out over his lips, parting them slightly for him. Gerard's eyes start to flutter open a few minutes later, slowly realising that he's not in the water anymore.

"Gerard, Gee..." Mikey croaks and strokes Gerard's hair. He holds the hipflask to his brother's lips again and Gerard takes a sip, licking at his lips the best he can. He gives his younger brother a weak smile and closes his eyes again.

"I'm n-not leaving you, ri-i-ght here." Mikey shivers out and kisses his brother's forehead as he holds him close again, setting the flask on the floor next to them.


April 15th 1912 –

Once Gerard starts to warm up a little and seems to be fully conscious he kisses Mikey's forehead and thanks him, smiling weakly when Mikey let a tear slip and a small smile tug his lips. Gerard softly asks for Frank who is still sat with Ray, huddled under a blanket. Mikey calls Frank and Gerard asks him to take over, pulling his lover to the floor so that they can huddle under their blankets, holding each other close just like Mikey had been doing.

Mikey goes reluctantly but Ray makes sure to hold him close as he sits down next to him and tries to keep him as warm as he can. The night seemed never ending but as the sun starts to rise on the sea it seems that a new day has arrived and with the sun starting to come up, it's seems to be getting a little easier to rekindle some hope and keep each other warm. Mikey pushes his nose in to the crook of Ray's neck and as he watches his brother and Frank curl up together on the floor of the lifeboat he starts to feel a sense of hope. He's completely frozen, can't feel a single toe on either foot but he knows that it's going to get better, they just need to be found now.

It's when they see the Carpathia that Mikey breathes a sigh of relief. Ray kisses the top of his head and whispers against his hair. "I'm going to have to help attract their attention, just in case. Will you be alright?" Ray asks and Mikey nods against his chest. Ray hums and kisses his head again before unwinding his arms from around Mikey, where they have been for the past few hours and stands up to help the crew take the flares from the emergency kit. Ray takes two from the kit and lights them, holding them as far above his head he can get, using the last bit of strength he has to try and get them rescued, to try and get Mikey safe and warm again. He waves the flares for as long as he possibly can before throwing them out to sea, hoping that the large ship can see them.

The Carpathia does see them, and it's not long before they are starting to row over to her. There's a queue of course, and many of the lifeboats that row over to be rescued first are full of women and children, cold and heartbroken and the few boats with men on hold back until they are safe. When it comes to their turn Ray helps row the boat over to the main ladder of the Carpathia and starts to help the rest of the people out of the boat and up the steps to the ship. When it comes to Mikey he points at Gerard and insists that he is helped first. Ray nods and with Frank they help Gerard to his feet. It's an effort in its own right to get Gerard up the steps and on to the ship but they manage with Frank helping push him up and the crew to help him at the top.

Once Frank and Gerard are safely on the ship Ray ushers Mikey to the steps, helping him up and holding his hips until he's steady enough to climb up. When Ray looks around he sees there is only him and two crew members left so follows quickly, climbing up after Mikey.

The rest is all a blur to Mikey. They are given blankets, food and brandy and he sits between his brother and Ray on a couch in the Carpathia's lounge, staring in to nothing as they start to try and process what has happened. Mikey will barely leave Gerard's side, bringing him food when he wants it and holding glasses of cold brandy to Gerard's mouth when he's feeling cold, and Ray has to beg Mikey to leave his side for a while to get some air on deck and some food of his own.

When they walk up to the deck and look out on to the sea it's the most surreal feeling Mikey's ever experienced. He's looking at the blue calm ocean, still and tranquil and he still can't believe that it was the same sea of water that has just claimed so many lives, taken an entire ship down and half the passengers on board too. He doesn't want to be on a boat any longer, and they won't be as they stand a little back from the railings, watching as the New York harbour comes in to sight.

They pass the Statue of Liberty, the green figure towering over them as they watch the port grow closer, bigger and the illusion of safety seems more apparent. Mikey stares up at it and rests his head back against Ray's shoulder who is standing behind him, arms around his middle. He doesn't even care who can see them anymore, because if there is one thing they have learnt by the past twenty-four hours is that anything is possible, nobody is safe and if you love somebody, you have to make it count.

"Everything has changed." Mikey mumbles but Ray seems to catch it over the thick sea air. He hums and kisses the side of Mikey's head.

"Yeah, it has," he agrees because everything has changed and although some parts are for the better, the things they have seen aren't going to leave them anytime soon and the people that they have lost aren't going to be returning.

"I want you to come home with me, Ray." Mikey states still staring out across the ocean, eyes narrow and concentrated.

"Is that possible?" Ray asks because if there is one thing he could choose right now is to be back in bed with Mikey, curled around one another as they talk about the world and their future but Mikey has a family, a rich and very important family and Ray isn't even sure he can be a part of that.

"They accepted Frank, they'll accept you." Mikey speaks with a glint of hope in his voice because one thing his is grateful for is that his parent's are the usual type of rich and important people, they are most of the time caring and forgiving.

"I'll be wherever you want me to be." Ray promises and kisses the side of Mikey's cheek this time, lips brushing against cold skin.

"I want you with me." Mikey insists and Ray kisses his cheek again.

"I'll be with you, I'll protect you." He kisses at Mikey's cheek again and again until he stops to hold his face against his, arms tight around his small frame. Their eyes are still focused on the sea and although they have seen and experienced things they will never be able to forget, Mikey can't help but feel a burst of hope and freedom all at once - because he has finally found himself something worth fighting for.

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